After her sister-in-law referred to her as "desperate, greedy, and extremely manipulative" in court, a judge in Utah decided that a mother of three who wrote a children's book about coping with grief after her husband's death and was later accused of poisoning him would remain in jail throughout her trial.
while a detective described how her husband had been discovered dead and "cold to the touch," Kouri Richins wailed and knelt while the prosecution argued that the evidence against her was sufficient to deny her bail.
Last month, while a captivated audience combed over comments Richins made while promoting "Are You With Me?"—the picture book about a father who wears angel wings and watches over his children after he passes away—charges were brought in her case, turning it into a true-crime phenomenon.
Monday's detention hearing gave Richins' attorneys and the prosecution an opportunity to preview their cases and present opposing explanations for what transpired. The prosecution called a detective, a private investigator, and a forensic accountant to testify, painting a picture of Richins as having planned her husband's murder with financial arrangements and drug purchases that were made after his death in March 2022.
In a victim impact statement she delivered in court, Amy Richins, Eric's sister stated that the family found it difficult to watch Kouri Richins advertise "Are You With Me?" and referred to her acts as "betrayal and terror."
Since Eric's passing, we have come to understand — and, regrettably, are often reminded — that Kouri is desperate, selfish, and incredibly manipulative, she added.
"We have watched as Kouri has paraded around portraying herself as a grieving widow and victim while trying to profit from my brother's death — while trying to profit from a book about his death and trying to get life insurance," she added.
Richins' attorneys argued that the evidence against her was both dubious and circumstantial, noting that no drugs were found at the family home after her death and implying that the state's star witness — the housekeeper who claims to have sold Richins the drugs — had a motive to lie because she was facing state and federal drug charges.
"They provided evidence to her, essentially until she got it right," Richins' attorney Skye Lazaro said of the housekeeper interviews.
Prosecutors questioned the detective about the housekeeper who claims to have sold her fentanyl weeks before it was found in her husband's system, as well as the family's "bug out bags" full of emergency supplies and passports, which they claimed made her a flight risk unsuitable for bail.
She huffed as they questioned the private investigator about the search history on her gadgets, which included searches for "luxury prison for the rich" and information from death certificates.
They questioned the forensic accountant about Richins' personal financial troubles and the millions of money at risk in her husband's inheritance, with relatives of both sides of the family sitting in the court gallery behind them.