The murder trial of Kouri Richins, a Utah mother accused of fatally poisoning her husband, was disrupted after a spectator was caught sketching members of the jury. The incident occurred at the Summit County Courthouse in Park City, where Richins, 35, is on trial for allegedly killing her spouse Eric, 39, in 2022.
Judge Richard Mrazik said a juror alerted staff by slipping a note to a bailiff, asking whether audience members were allowed to sketch jurors without consent. The note described the behaviour as 'distracting and concerning.' Court staff confirmed that the person was identifying the sketches by juror number.
The judge ordered the spectator, who has not been identified, to be removed from the courtroom and banned from returning. 'We cannot have anyone doing anything to identify the jurors in any way,' Mrazik said. The sketchbook was confiscated, and drawings of the jurors were removed.
Jurors were informed of the situation by a bailiff to avoid speculation. Audience members are prohibited from sketching jurors due to safety concerns, particularly in high-profile cases like Richins's. Richins has pleaded not guilty to aggravated murder and other charges, including attempted criminal homicide and fraud.
Prosecutors allege Richins killed her husband for his money, as she was $4.5 million in debt and believed she would inherit his $4 million estate. They claim she laced a Moscow Mule with five times the lethal dose of fentanyl. Richins later published a children's book about grief titled Are You With Me?
