A Utah judge on Friday denied a motion to dismiss murder charges against Kouri Richins, the Utah mom accused of poisoning her husband and writing a children’s book about grief afterward.
Richins is accused of lacing a Moscow Mule she made for Eric Richins with five times the lethal amount of fentanyl in March 2022, as Crime Online has reported.
Her attorneys argued that prosecutors had “irreparably harmed Ms Richins’ right to a fair trial” when they accused her of witness tampering in a letter — dubbed the “walk the dog letter” — found in her jail cell. Prosecutors said Richins engaged in “witness tampering involving her brother, seeking to have her brother support a false factual narrative,” in connection with her husband’s death in the letter directing her mother to tell her brother what to say.
‘Walk the Dog’ Lett… by Leigh Egan
But Richins said it wasn’t a letter at all but part of a “fictional mystery book” she was writing.
“The court simply isn’t persuaded that the conduct of the Summit County Attorney’s Office violates” the rule of law, said Mrazik in his ruling on the motion to dismiss. “The court is confident that it can preside over a sufficient vior dire process to ensure that Ms. Richins does in fact receive a fair trial.”
Prosecutors sought to bar Richins from communicating with her mother or brother because of the letter, but Judge Richard Mrazik denied that motion, citing Richins’ First Amendment rights, CNN reported.
Mrazik ruled that a third-party attorney would review material written by Richins to determine if attorney-client privilege would apply. He told defense attorneys to provide their proposed rules of engagement for handling the material by December 1.
He also denied a gag order and contempt sanctions against prosecutors over the letter.
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[Featured image: Kouri Richins at Friday’s hearing/(AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, Pool)]
