Utah grief author Kouri Richins makes first comments since her arrest in husband's fatal poisoning

Kouri Richins, the Utah mother accused of spiking her husband’s cocktail with a fatal dose of fentanyl, made her first comments since she was arrested last year in a series of jailhouse statements that criticized prosecutors, asserted her innocence and described recent upheaval in the case as “forced.”

Richins, 34, a mother of three who wrote a children’s book about grief after her husband died, made the recorded comments to a spokesperson who provided the audio exclusively to "Dateline" this week. Richins has been held in the Summit County Jail, east of Salt Lake City, since a judge denied her bail last year.

For more on Kouri Richins’ case, listen to Dateline True Crime Weekly

“I’ve been silent for a year, locked away from my kids, my family, my life, living with the media telling the world who they think I am, what they think I’ve done or how they think I’ve lived,” she said in one statement. “And it’s time to start speaking up.

“You took an innocent mom away from her babies,” she added. “And this means war.”

The comments come after a judge granted her lawyers' request to withdraw from her defense against charges of aggravated murder and other crimes in the death of her husband, Eric Richins, 39, on March 4, 2022.

Kouri and Eric Richins.

Kouri and Eric Richins. via Facebook

Richins’ lead attorney, Skye Lazaro, attributed her team's withdrawal request to an “irreconcilable and nonwaivable situation,” according to a filing in the case Friday.

In one of her statements, Richins said last week that she was filled with “great devastation” and added: “My defense team has been forced to withdraw from my case. Represented or not, we all know and should understand there’s only so much I can say. But what I will say is this withdrawal was not my choice. And it was not a personal choice of any counsel on my defense team.”

Lazaro would not comment to "Dateline" on the withdrawal.

The withdrawal request was filed the day Richins’ lawyers asked a judge to disqualify prosecutors over what they described in a filing as “severe violations” that compromised their defense and violated Richins’ constitutional right to effective counsel.

From May to December of last year, the filing states, authorities recorded jail calls between Richins and her lawyers without their consent. Prosecutors had listened to some of them, the filing alleges.

Kouri Richins

Kouri Richins, during a hearing on May 15, 2024, in Park City, Utah. Rick Bowmer / AP Pool

When one of the defense lawyers discovered the practice and asked prosecutors whether they were aware of it, Summit County's top elected prosecutor, Margaret Olson, responded, “NO!” according to emails included in the filing.

Minutes later, lead prosecutor Brad Bloodworth wrote that because one of the defense lawyers had refused to use a phone app that shields attorney-client calls, those calls had been recorded and that thelawyer was “well aware of this.”

Bloodworth added that prosecutors had not listened to any of the calls. When the defense team continued to express concern, Bloodworth responded that by not using the app, the lawyer had seemingly consented to the practice of recording the calls — and the defense team had “ratified” it because it had been happening for six months.

Prosecutors had provided the lawyers with the recorded calls through discovery throughout that time period, Bloodworth said in the email.

In one of her statements, Richins accused prosecutors of doing "anything they can to prolong this process and hide their corruption. I will not play into the prosecution’s unconstitutional behavior anymore."

“Although I am extremely disappointed where we’re at right now with this case, I’m anxious. I’m anxious to prove my innocence. I’m anxious to get to trial," she said in the statement.

In an email on behalf of Bloodworth's office, Olson said that since charges were filed against Richins, her office had "deferred to and accommodated" the defendant's scheduling preferences and requests.

In a statement released Wednesday night, Olson's office said the defense lawyer's motion to disqualify prosecutors was "materially inaccurate" and had been "filed in bad faith."

The statement said the county attorney's office planned to file a response to the allegations by May 31 and address the motion "at the appropriate times and in the appropriate forums."

Prosecutors have alleged that Richins was deep in debt and had fraudulently obtained a nearly $2 million life insurance policy on her husband before she gave him a Moscow mule that authorities say was spiked with a lethal dose of fentanyl.

Prosecutors charged Richins this year with an additional count of attempted murder, alleging that she drugged her husband's Valentine’s Day sandwich in a separate effort to try to kill him. She was also charged with forgery and mortgage and insurance fraud.

Richins has not entered a plea. She and her family have maintained her innocence.

One year after Eric Richins died, Kouri Richins published “Are You With Me?” a children’s book that sought to comfort children who had lost loved ones. She dedicated the book to her “amazing” husband.

Tim Stelloh

Tim Stelloh is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital.

OTHER NEWS

15 minutes ago

Mbappé wants to erase bad memory of decisive penalty miss and leave Euro 2024 as a champion

15 minutes ago

Gig for Gaza event in Canberra raises funds for Australian doctors working in Palestine

15 minutes ago

Scientists sound alarm after making disturbing discovery in the Amazon: 'We have all this information; now let's act on it'

15 minutes ago

Luai stars as Panthers survive Knights scare

15 minutes ago

Serbia XI vs England: Predicted lineup, confirmed Euro 2024 team news and injuries today

15 minutes ago

Transit expert highlights issues with popular design trend in truck and SUV models: 'It honestly infuriates me'

15 minutes ago

Revealed: The ultimate dad jokes this Father's Day, according to AI - so, would they make you laugh?

15 minutes ago

UK's 'tallest rollercoaster' Hyperia at Thorpe Park 'breaks down' - with thrill-seekers stuck on ride at 236ft for an HOUR just days after reopening

15 minutes ago

Hundreds of Majorcans take over tiny picture postcard cove made famous by Instagram 'influencers' and unfurl banners reading 'SOS Residents' amid Spanish island's anti-tourism backlash against UK holidaymakers

15 minutes ago

Woman claims she was fined £200 for littering after seagulls ate a few McDonald's chips she accidentally dropped on the floor

15 minutes ago

Can I take legal action if I buy a house with invasive bamboo? And do I need to tell buyers if my home's infested? MailOnline answers your questions about 'Japanese knotweed 2.0'

15 minutes ago

Gordon Ramsay is flooded with well wishes from daughter Holly and celebrity pals after chef suffered a horrific cycling accident

18 minutes ago

Harry Kane says England start Euro 2024 with ‘the most in-form squad we’ve had’

18 minutes ago

How the Euros could change the result of the election

20 minutes ago

Sheffield DocFest Confronts Challenges Facing Nonfiction Film Industry, In Midst Of Turbulent Political, Economic Environment

20 minutes ago

When you can hear every word, thank the sound mixers

20 minutes ago

U.S. Open Complaints Grow After Paywall Frustrations: 'Atrocious' Sound & Graphics Issues Anger Golf World

21 minutes ago

Zain Davids, Shilton van Wyk bolster Blitzboks in last-ditch bid for Paris Olympics

21 minutes ago

Star Wars Outlaws: Ubisoft reveals details and gameplay of anticipated game

21 minutes ago

New poll suggests less than half of Americans plan to buy an EV for their next vehicle — here’s why

21 minutes ago

ATP Halle draw: Jannik Sinner finds out first opponent as world No 1 as he lands tricky draw

21 minutes ago

Corey Heim notches best Xfinity Series finish at Iowa Speedway

21 minutes ago

Biden, Trump step up outreach to Black men

21 minutes ago

Four nights in the Maldives taught me something I wish I'd known 10 years ago

21 minutes ago

My Spy The Eternal City official trailer

22 minutes ago

Jo Cox's sister warns that politicians are still forced to fear for their lives eight years after Labour MP's murder by far-Right thug

22 minutes ago

Lady Louise Windsor, 20, borrowed her mother the Duchess of Edinburgh's floral fascinator for Trooping the Colour

22 minutes ago

Kevin Campbell tells incredible story of a 14-year-old Wayne Rooney during Southport friendly in resurfaced footage of late striker, after the former England captain paid tribute to his ex-Everton team-mate following his death aged 54

22 minutes ago

Thatcherism, austerity, Brexit, Liz Truss... goodbye and good riddance to all that

22 minutes ago

Starmer called 'political robot'

22 minutes ago

Southgate expects 'everybody to enjoy' England's opening Euros match despite security concerns

22 minutes ago

The US Open Contender Who Created His Own Highly-Rated Golf Course

22 minutes ago

John Cale's lockdown music fuelled by rage

24 minutes ago

Operation Mincemeat: the West End hit is still the perfect mix of ingenious, silly and moving

29 minutes ago

Cian Uijtdebroeks feels he needs to slow down a bit: "Sometimes I just want too much"

29 minutes ago

Hargreaves Lansdown founders hold keys in £4.7bn takeover battle

29 minutes ago

Premier League referee Bobby Madley shares touching memory of Matija Sarkic's brilliant gag on national team duty with Serbia... as he pays tribute to Millwall star after his death aged 26

32 minutes ago

Motorcyclist, 23, dies after accident at junction of Bencoolen Street, Stamford Road

32 minutes ago

BIG3 Week 1 recap: Highlights, final scores, key takeaways from season opener

32 minutes ago

Would the Lloyds share price be higher if the bank was listed in the US?