After deliberating for just over three hours, a Utah jury found Kouri Richins guilty of poisoning her husband with a fentanyl-laced drink at their home in 2022.
Richins, a Utah grief author and mother of three, was convicted of attempted aggravated murder for a failed poisoning attempt on Valentine’s Day 2022, weeks before Eric Richins' death. In addition, the jury convicted her of forgery and fraud related to his life insurance coverage.
The verdict in the high-profile case came after jurors listened to more than 40 witnesses share testimony about the rocky state of the couple's marriage, a secret affair, and financial issues during the 13-day trial.
Wendy Lewis, one of Richins’ defense attorneys, argued at trial that the evidence does not prove that Richins killed her husband.
Here are the key moments from the trial:
Housekeeper says she bought Kouri Richins illicit pills
One of the most pivotal testimonies in the trial came from Carmen Lauber, who worked as a housekeeper for Richins. For two days, Lauber testified about purchasing illicit pills for Richins in early 2022.
According to Lauber, Richins first asked her to get pain pills for "an investor" Richins knew in early February 2022. She testified that Richins paid her $600 for the pills.
Days before Valentine’s Day in 2022, Richins asked for "something stronger," Lauber told the court. She testified that she told Richins she could get fentanyl, and Richins told her to get it. Lauber said she got about 20 pills from a then-drug dealer named Robert Crozier and that Richins paid her $1,000.
Lauber said Richins asked for pills a third time and paid her another $1,000. After Eric’s death, Lauber said she spoke to Richins over the phone.
"I said, 'Please tell me these pills were not for him.' She said, no they were not," Lauber testified. "Eric passed away from a brain aneurysm."
Lauber said she learned that Eric had died of an overdose from investigators.
"That hit hard," she said. "Only for the fact that if that’s what happened, I needed to step up and take accountability of my part in this."
"At first, it took a minute to process everything," she said, wiping away tears.
During cross-examination, the defense tried to undermine Lauber's credibility by highlighting her past drug use and the deal she reached with prosecutors to secure her testimony.
Crozier also took the stand and admitted to selling Lauber pills, but said that at that time he was not selling fentanyl.
Kouri Richins was unhappy in marriage, witnesses say
Testimony from the couple's friends shed some light on the troubled state of their marriage before Eric's death. One friend testified that Richins was unhappy in her marriage, while another said she was worried about how she would financially support herself if they divorced.
Allison Wright, whose husband owned a stone masonry business with Eric, testified about a February 2019 trip both couples took together. Wright said Richins told her that she felt “trapped” in her marriage because of a prenuptial agreement.
"Eric would be financially secure, and her the opposite. She feared what would happen in the divorce. She mentioned maybe the kids would prefer him with the lifestyle that they had … where she would have less. She feared how she would be represented by him in the community. I felt for her," Wright testified. "It was a hard conversation."
Defense argued that Wright’s testimony was irrelevant to the charges, but the judge denied the motion.
Another friend, Becky Lloyd, also testified that Richins had confided in her about feeling stuck in her marriage.
"She was worried about her kids, she was worried that she was going to lose them and that Eric was going to take the kids from her and that his family was going to turn the community against her," said Lloyd, who also worked at Eric's stone masonry business. "She said that in many ways it would be better if he were dead.”
The defense tried to undermine Lloyd’s testimony by playing a recording of Lloyd saying that she could not confidently say on the stand that Richins wanted her husband dead.
Friends recount Valentine's Day poisoning
One of the charges against Richins is connected to Valentine's Day 2022, when prosecutors say she poisoned her husband's sandwich in an attempt to kill him. Eric broke out in hives after taking a bite of the sandwich, used his son's EpiPen and took a nap, according to court documents.
Allie Staking, Kouri Richins' friend, said Eric told a group of their friends about the incident, but did not seem upset about it.
"It was more of a funny story," she testified. "It was an allergic reaction is what we had thought it was. We were laughing at the story, along with Eric."
But Josh Kraze, Eric's friend, said Eric was "somber" and "very serious" when he called and told him about the Valentine's Day incident.
Cody Wright, Eric's business partner and friend, said Eric had "fear in his voice" when he told him about the incident.
Kouri Richins' former boyfriend gets emotional on stand
Robert Josh Grossman, Richins’ former boyfriend and lover, got emotional on the stand and said he had "guilt" and "sorrow" about the affair. He seemed visibly uncomfortable and on edge as the court reviewed their text messages. In some of their conversations, the pair discussed getting married and building a future together.
"Like, actually IN LOVE with me? If I was divorced right now and ask you to marry me tomorrow, you would?" she wrote in a Feb. 15, 2022, text.
"Yes. In Love with Y O U! Of course I would," Grossman wrote back.
At one point, Grossman put his head down and wiped away tears, prompting the judge to call for a brief recess.
Grossman testified that the relationship ended a few months after Eric’s death.
"We had a falling out, disagreements. You know, things changed after Eric passed," he said. "Things weren’t the same."
