September 10, 2026

The Grief Book Murder: How Kouri Richins Poisoned Her Husband With Fentanyl

She wrote a children’s book about grief. A jury said she caused it.

She wrote a children's book about grief. A jury said she caused it.

At 3:21 a.m. on March 4, 2022, Kouri Richins called 911 from the family home in Kamas, Utah, and said her husband was cold. Eric Richins, 39, a stone-mason and youth soccer coach with three young sons, was pronounced dead just after 5 a.m. The medical examiner found fentanyl in his blood at roughly five times a lethal dose — taken by mouth. A year later, Kouri self-published a children's picture book about a boy grieving his father, "Are You With Me?", and promoted it on Utah television. Less than a month after that, she was arrested for his murder.

This video follows the case from the night Eric died to the sentencing hearing four years later: the Valentine's Day 2022 sandwich that left Eric in hives and struggling to breathe, the four life-insurance policies worth about $2 million that prosecutors said Kouri bought without his knowledge, the $2 million property she closed on the day after his death, the housekeeper who testified she bought fentanyl pills at Kouri's request, the phone searches for "what is a lethal dose of fentanyl," the "Walk the Dog" letter found in her jail cell, and the three-week trial in Park City at which the defense called no witnesses.

Then the outcome: eight jurors deliberating about three hours before convicting on all five counts; victim-impact statements from Eric's father, his sister, and — read by therapists — his three sons, each saying they would not feel safe if their mother were ever released; Kouri's own 30-minute statement insisting she is innocent; and Judge Richard Mrazik's ruling that someone convicted of these crimes "is simply too dangerous to ever be free." Life without parole, plus consecutive sentences on every other count.

Kouri Richins has said she will appeal. A separate case charging her with more than two dozen additional financial felonies has not yet gone to trial; she is presumed innocent of those charges.

Watch the full documentary:

Sources and image credits

FACTUAL SOURCES
- Summit County Sheriff's Office / Summit County Attorney's Office, press
  release "State of Utah v. Kouri Darden Richins" (Third District Court
  Case No. 231500139), May 9, 2023 — arrest date, initial appearance.
- CBS News, "Kouri Richins, Utah mom who wrote grief book, found guilty of
  murdering her husband," March 16, 2026 (with AP) — verdict, deliberation
  time, Valentine's Day sandwich, Greece trip, insurance policies bought
  2015–2017, mansion closing the day after his death, neighbor testimony.
- CBS News, "Kouri Richins sentenced to life without parole in husband's
  fentanyl-laced cocktail murder," May 13, 2026 (with AP) — sentence
  breakdown, Judge Mrazik's remarks, victim-impact statements, Kouri's
  statement, appeal notice, pending financial case.
- KPCW (Connor Thomas), "Summit County jury finds Kouri Richins guilty of
  murder in husband's death," March 16, 2026 — jury composition, 42
  witnesses, defense closing, hydrocodone bottle, slayer-statute claim.
- KPCW, "Housekeeper says she sold Kouri Richins fentanyl, drug husband
  died from," Feb. 26, 2026 — Carmen Lauber testimony, Draper gas station,
  Heber/Midway hand-offs, immunity.
- KPCW live trial blog (Feb.–Mar. 2026) — 911-call timing, orange
  notebook, "black widow"/"witch or widow" closings, "Walk the Dog" letter
  (found Sept. 2023, read aloud by Det. Jeff O'Driscoll), Rule 17 motion.
- KPCW, "Summit County mom arrested for husband's murder," May 8, 2023.
- Deseret News / KSL / ABC4 / NewsNation, sentencing coverage, May 13, 2026
  — Gene Richins and Katie Richins-Benson statements, sons' statements
  read by therapists.
- Wikipedia, "Murder of Eric Richins" (accessed Sept. 7, 2026) — timeline
  (911 call 3:21 a.m., death pronounced 4:58 a.m.), phone-search terms,
  debt figure, citing NBC News, Sky News, Salt Lake Tribune and CNN.

VISUAL CREDITS (in order of appearance)
- Eric and Kouri Richins family photo (opening and closing slides) —
  widely published for identification in coverage of this case; child's
  face blurred at source. Via KPCW.
- Moscow Mule — illustrative. Will Shenton, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons.
- 2 mg of fentanyl beside a penny — U.S. DEA, public domain. Illustrative.
- Seized fentanyl pills — U.S. DEA, public domain. Illustrative.
- Richins family photo (five people, children blurred at source) — widely
  published in coverage of this case. Via KPCW.
- Main Street, Park City — illustrative. InSapphoWeTrust, CC BY-SA 2.0,
  Wikimedia Commons.
- Hand holding $100 bills — illustrative. CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
  (reused from this series).
- Kouri Richins at KPCW's studios, April 2023 — photo: KPCW.
- Kouri Richins booking photo, May 8, 2023 — Summit County Sheriff's
  Office, released via public-records request.
- Gas station at night — illustrative. Doug Davey, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia
  Commons.
- Phone in hand — illustrative. RDNE Stock project, Pexels (reused from
  this series).
- Summit County Sheriff's Office / County Attorney press release, May 9,
  2023 — public record.
- Summit County Courthouse, Coalville — illustrative (the trial was held
  at the Summit County Justice Center in Park City). Tricia Simpson,
  CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons.
- Kouri Richins at trial, Feb. 23, 2026 — pool photo, Spenser Heaps/AP,
  via KPCW.
- Defense attorney Wendy Lewis, closing arguments, March 16, 2026 — pool
  photo, David Jackson/The Park Record, via KPCW.
- Prosecutor Brad Bloodworth and Kouri Richins, March 16, 2026 — pool
  photo, David Jackson/The Park Record, via KPCW.
- Gavel — illustrative. Joe Gratz, CC0, Wikimedia Commons (reused).
- Kouri Richins and Wendy Lewis at sentencing, May 13, 2026 (two crops) —
  pool photo, Trent Nelson/The Salt Lake Tribune via AP.
- Prison cell block — illustrative, reused licensed stock from this series.
- NOT used: Court TV livestream screenshots, KSL/Park Record staff photos,
  any broadcast footage.

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- Rung 1 checked and REJECTED: "Dream House: The home to die for: The Kouri
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- Rung 2 declined as decorative — this case turned on a cooperating
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The Grief Book Murder: How Kouri Richins Poisoned Her Husband With Fentanyl

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Sources and image credits