The jury in Kouri Richins’ trial will consist of Summit County residents who will be interviewed virtually following an order issued by the Utah Supreme Court.
Justices denied an appeal filed by the Summit County Attorney’s Office and the Kamas mother of three’s legal defense team, which asked the high court to overturn a ruling made by Third District Court Presiding Judge Laura Scott in connection to the criminal trial.
The two sides wanted the state Supreme Court to allow them to draw prospective jurors from Salt Lake County in addition to Summit County and to allow jurors to be questioned in person rather than online.
Third District Court Judge Richard Mrazik initially approved the request, though he was not familiar with any other cases in Utah that have expanded the jury pool to multiple counties. Scott ultimately overruled Mrazik, saying she did not see “extraordinary circumstances” that would grant special accommodations.
Appellant lawyers representing Kouri and the state went before the high court on Feb. 11, arguing Scott abused her discretion and overstepped her authority. They said the trial judge, Mrazik, is in the best position to determine whether there should be special jury selection rules.
Expanding the pool was also seen as a way to diversify the jury and in-person interviews were seen as a way to gauge how each individual would behave in a courtroom — likely full of media.
An attorney representing the Administrative Office of the Courts, Bryson King, raised privacy and security concerns if an estimated 1,500 prospective jurors were called into the courtroom over the four-day selection process. He also pointed to the standing order that was adopted by the Third District Court in 2023 stating jury selection “will be conducted virtually” unless there are “extraordinary circumstances” or the presiding judge gives “prior approval.”
The Utah Supreme Court issued a five-page order denying the joint motion seven days later.
“We can see that reasonable minds could differ on the benefits of departing from the standard practice in this case, but we cannot see that the Presiding Judge’s decision fell outside the bounds of reasonability. The Presiding Judge opined that the Parties’ concerns about the prospective jurors’ reactions to the media scrutiny could be addressed ‘with carefully crafted jury questionnaires, jury instructions, and decorum orders,’” the order stated.
Justices also determined the Third District Court did not have the authority to grant the request for a multi-county jury pool. They said the state Legislature “intended that the jury pool be composed of jurors from a single county.”
The County Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the decision.
Kouri Richins and the state are scheduled to appear before Mrazik Friday afternoon to review the logistics of jury selection, including the questionnaire sent to prospective jurors, in the criminal case.
Kouri faces nine felony charges stemming from the death of her husband, Eric Richins, including aggravated murder and attempted criminal homicide.
Eric died of a fentanyl overdose in March 2022. Prosecutors allege Kouri poisoned him with a Moscow Mule cocktail laced with fentanyl, and that she attempted to do it a month earlier with a drug-laced sandwich on Valentine’s Day. The County Attorney’s Office said Kouri felt trapped in her marriage and had a financial motive to kill her husband.
Kouri Richins and her family have maintained her innocence. Since her arrest in May 2023, Kouri has been held in the Summit County Jail without bail. A four week trial is scheduled to start in late April.