10/13/23 --
State claims Kouri Richins' attorneys not providing all evidence, asks them to release it
KAMAS, Utah (KUTV) — The state claims Kouri Richins’ attorneys are not giving them all the evidence they’re looking for, and they’re asking the judge to compel her defense team to hand it over. [State filed motion to compel for defense to hand over Walk the Dog/other inmates letter, and the alleged manuscript].
[..]
Former Salt Lake County prosecutor Nathan Evershed, who is not connected to this case, said it’s rare to see a legal battle this intense before the trial.
“You can see what’s battling out here, and it’s battling out here, right there in public. It’s a very, very interesting case,” he said.
Evershed believes the "Walk the Dog" letter is a bombshell piece of evidence, and he can see why both sides are battling so intensely over it.
“On the one hand, you have a person who has attorney/client privilege, and that’s very, very important," he said. "On the other hand, you have a government that has an interest in pursuing justice and believes that there is material evidence that’s there in the possession of this attorney.”
The motion claimed both sides agreed the writings would be handed over to a “taint attorney...” an independent lawyer who would read the documents, take out the protected information and give the rest to the prosecution. However, the state claimed the defense later told them they wouldn’t hand over the pages.
The motion quotes the defense attorney as saying, “I have consulted with our [General Counsel] on the matter, and unfortunately from an ethical standpoint and duties to my client, my hands are tied.”
Prosecutors state, “Defense counsel’s statements as well as the Defendant’s course of conduct indicate that the Envelope contains additional non-privileged material that will help the State adequately prepare its case for trial, including the letter written by another inmate. Defense counsel’s unwillingness to disclose the general subject matter of the Envelope’s broader content only amplifies this indication.”
11/5/23 --
Court refuses to dismiss Kouri Richins murder case
Prosecutors asked the court to bar her from speaking with her mom and brother, alleging the letter was witness tampering. The defense fired back, saying the state of Utah was throwing around unproven accusations and prejudicing the jury pool.
Mrazik denied both sides’ motions, and more importantly, refused to dismiss the case. Kouri can still talk to her family, and the state won’t be penalized for making the “Walk the Dog” letter public.
[..]
But there’s a wrinkle: Kouri didn’t just write the “Walk the Dog” letter. She wrote 60 more pages, too.
She passed the rest of her writing, plus a second letter prosecutors say another inmate gave her, to defense attorney Skye Lazaro in an envelope in September.
The state says that could be evidence, and it wants to see the documents.
Lazaro said it’s privileged information, but after much discussion Nov. 3, she agreed to give a third-party attorney Kouri’s 60 additional pages and the other inmate’s letter.
Prosecutors will select that attorney, and Mrazik will issue a strict order later about who is allowed to see the documents.
He indicated during the Nov. 3 hearing he would prefer prosecutors not see what was in the envelope, and the attorney they select to review it would act in their interest.
The judge told both sides to meet and decide the best way to proceed before December. Then he’ll set up a closed hearing to see if the writings are, first, actually privileged and, second, relevant to the case.
Kouri has claimed the 60 pages are the rest of a fictional book she’s working on.
[..]
Nov. 3, Lazaro also claimed jail staff had already searched the envelope it was in multiple times. It contained more than just
Kouri’s alleged manuscript and the other inmate’s letter, but those will be the
only documents up for review in December.
December’s hearing will address the schedule of the case going forward too, now that the defense’s request to dismiss the case was denied.
_______________________________________________
ETA: Add Update to the MSM referenced above.
OP's note: As of 12/18/23, it's not clear if the Prosecutor selected a "Taint Attorney" to view the content of the envelope, and/or whether or not the parties agreed to the best way to proceed (before December) as previously requested by Judge Mrazik.
There's also no evidence that the Court set a December "closed hearing" to determine if the writings are first, privileged, and, second, relevant to the case.
Per the Court Calendar, no hearings are scheduled within the next 30 days. Also unknown if "closed hearings" will appear on the District Court Calendar.
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