Utah mother Kouri Richins gets life without parole for fentanyl murder of husband

Kouri Richins, the Utah mother convicted of murdering her husband with a fentanyl-laced cocktail, received a life sentence without parole on Wednesday, his birthday.

The 36-year-old, who wrote a children's book about grief after her husband's 2022 death, appeared before Utah district court Judge Richard Mrazik. The judge handed down the sentence after overseeing her criminal trial.

Prosecutors had pushed for life without parole, arguing that Richins' three children should never fear encountering her again. Her defense sought a term that included the possibility of release.

Richins, who did not testify at trial, spoke to the court for about 30 minutes, directing most of her words to her sons.

"I know today you don't want to speak to me and you hate me. That's OK. When you are ready, I will be here for you," she said.

A jury convicted her in March of aggravated murder, attempted aggravated murder, insurance fraud and forgery. Prosecutors said she served Eric Richins a Moscow Mule cocktail laced with nearly five times a lethal dose of fentanyl at their home outside Park City in March 2022. The day after his death, she signed documents to close a multimillion-dollar real estate deal. She had pleaded not guilty to all charges.

"I can't believe that this is real," she told the court later. "Convicted of taking one of the people out of my life that fulfills it the most. I'm still in shock. I'm still in disbelief. Accused and now convicted of such a heinous crime. Convicted of never seeing you boys again."

Richins maintained her innocence. "As much as you've been influenced into thinking that I'm a murderer, that I took your dad from you, that is completely wrong. That is an absolute lie," she said. "I will not be blamed for something I did not do."

She vowed to appeal and urged her sons not to give up on her. "So please, I know that right now you may not believe me, that you believe I took dad from you, and that's OK. I still and will always love you, and I'm asking that you please just don't give up on me. I'm coming home. Not today, not this year, but we're going to make this right. Our justice system will get this right, although this courtroom can't seem to. We have a long road ahead, but I will never quit fighting my way home to you boys."

Before her statement, Richins sat silently for hours as family members of her late husband delivered victim impact statements. She showed facial reactions at times.

Eric Richins' sister, Katie Richins-Benson, asked for the maximum sentence. In tearful remarks, she said Richins kept her three sons from the family for 15 months after the death and that her brother saw Richins as evil. Richins appeared to smirk and roll her eyes during the statement.

Counselors read impact statements from Richins' sons, who called for the harshest penalty. One, identified as A.R., said she only cared about herself and her boyfriends and that he would not feel safe if she were free. Another, C.R., accused her of killing most of his animals and possibly trying to poison him with fentanyl, which caused a seizure.

Richins' attorneys declined to comment before the hearing, which came on the day Eric Richins would have turned 44, according to the Associated Press.

Prosecutors cited the sons' statements in a memo urging life without parole.

Before her May 2023 arrest, Richins promoted her book Are You with Me?, about coping with loss. On a local Utah TV station, she called her husband's death unexpected and described grief challenges for her and her sons.

The trial started in February in Park City and ran three weeks, with 13 days of testimony. Her defense called no witnesses, and she did not testify. Prosecutors portrayed her as a killer after his money.

Richins faces separate charges over financial dealings that have not yet gone to trial, the Associated Press reported.