A Utah mother who published a children's book about grief after her husband's death has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for his murder. Kouri Richins, 35, was convicted in March of lacing her husband Eric's cocktail with five times the lethal dose of fentanyl at their home near Park City in 2022.
Judge Richard Mrazik handed down the sentence on what would have been Eric Richins' 44th birthday, stating that 'a person convicted of those things is simply too dangerous to ever be free.' Prosecutors said Richins, a real estate agent with a house-flipping business, was millions in debt and planning a future with another man. She had taken out multiple life insurance policies on her husband without his knowledge and falsely believed she would inherit his estate worth over $4 million.
Jurors also found Richins guilty of four other felonies, including attempted murder for trying to poison her husband with a fentanyl-laced sandwich on Valentine's Day weeks earlier. Richins has maintained her innocence, calling the verdict 'an absolute lie.' Her case gained widespread attention when she was arrested in 2023 while promoting her children's book 'Are You With Me?' about a boy coping with the death of his father.
During the trial, prosecutors portrayed Richins as a money-hungry killer, presenting text messages with her lover fantasising about leaving her husband and gaining millions, as well as internet searches about lethal doses of fentanyl and luxury prisons. The couple's three sons, aged nine, seven and five at the time of their father's death, told the judge they would feel unsafe if their mother was ever released. The oldest, now 13, said: 'I'm afraid if she gets out, she will come after me and my brothers, my whole family.'
