UT - Kouri Richins, 33, Author, wife, mom, charged in husband’s unexpected death last year, May 2023 #3

[tlcya]

I wonder if the attorney/client phone calls and the withdrawal are at all related.

My understanding is the attorneys were put on notice that calls were recorded and they had to take some sort of action using an app in order to prevent that but elected not to do so. What was overheard on those calls and did it cause an issue that then required the withdrawal of attorneys?

 

[Niner]

So - any word on the hearing that was at 10am Utah time? It is now - I believe about - oh 11am?? ... never mind... it is almost 8pm here...

 

[Justice101]

Based on what we know versus what Kouri is saying... this is either the longest string of coincidences on record to point to her guilt... OR.... she is guilty.

 

[Pruddennce]

So - any word on the hearing that was at 10am Utah time? It is now - I believe about - oh 11am?? ... never mind... it is almost 8pm here...

was looking for info about the status hearing, it was for today after the new attorneys were appointed? was it televised?

 

[Niner]

was looking for info about the status hearing, it was for today after the new attorneys were appointed? was it televised?

I do not know if it was televised - maybe someone else will know.

 

[Pruddennce]

I do not know if it was televised - maybe someone else will know.

thanks N. supposedly to start at around noon, I think..cant find anything.

 

[Niner]

thanks N. supposedly to start at around noon, I think..cant find anything.

Ah - you are right - forgot to change the time on my notes - noon yes!

 

[tlcya]

But Lazaro filed to withdraw from the case on Friday, citing an ethical mandate from an “irreconcilable and nonwaivable situation.” The issue emerged from the civil cases Kouri is facing from her husband’s family. No further explanation was given, only that the issue came to light after Kouri’s most recent hearing on May 15.
Kouri Richins' defense withdraws, wants prosecution disqualified

haven't yet found an update as to today's status hearing

 

[Seattle1]

From MSM post #101:

The court document states the conflict first arose in the civil cases in which the law firm represented Kouri, but it now extends to the criminal proceedings. The matter emerged after the hearing on May 15, after which Kouri and her attorneys met privately.

Lazaro said her team discovered the jail had been recording phone calls with one of Richins' attorneys, J. Ramzi Hamady and brought that up with prosecutors on Dec. 11, 2023.

“The contemporaneous written and digital record … will establish that at all times the Summit County Attorney’s Office has acted professionally and ethically. Assertions to the contrary are false and actionable under Utah law,” Summit County Attorney Margaret Olson said.

The recorded defense calls to KR by her favorite, civil, attorney is just a red herring!

The jail provides an easy work around for attorneys of inmates to be recognized and their calls not recorded but KR's attorney (Hamady) refuses to use the phone app so his calls are recorded automatically by the jail like any other public call would be.

Since December 2023, the same calls by Hamady have been manually identified as attorney-client privilege, and discovered to the defense. The prosecution isn't listening to the calls past identifying the caller as an attorney of record.

If not in bad faith, it doesn't follow SL would make the allegation about recorded jail calls against the prosecution-- five months later, and/or the same date, she requests to remove herself and her law firm from the case.

And the rub, to also cite the prosecution responsibly for delaying this case! OK, that's just over the top-- even for SL. MOO

 

[Seattle1]

Kouri Richins preliminary hearing date removed as new defense team steps in

As Kouri Richins' defense attorneys have withdrawn from the case and a new team has stepped in, a preliminary hearing scheduled for June has been completely removed from the calendar.

www.fox13now.com

5/24/24

PARK CITY, Utah — As Kouri Richins' defense attorneys have withdrawn from the case and a new team has stepped in, a preliminary hearing scheduled for June has been completely removed from the calendar.

[..]

Lewis explained that June 18 was no longer a viable date because of "multiple terabytes of discovery" that her team needed to review.

Mrazik completely removed the June 18 preliminary hearing from the calendar in order to give the defense time to catch up.

[..]

Richins and her new team will appear next in court on June 21 at 3 p.m. for an in-person hearing.

 

[Seattle1]

Kouri Richins pending trial delayed indefinitely as new defense team takes murder case

The Kamas mother of three meets with her new attorneys Monday.

www.kpcw.org

5/24/24

The new team—Salt Lake City attorneys Kathy Nester and Wendy Lewis—needs time to meet with Richins and look over the evidence.

“I understand there are multiple terabytes of discovery,” Lewis told the court.

Mrazik appointed Nester and Lewis through a court order May 23.

Richins' previous attorneys withdrew May 20 after telling the judge there was an “irreconcilable and nonwaivable situation.” Court records indicate former defense attorney Skye Lazaro told Mrazik Richins was unable to continue to pay for her defense.

Another hearing in the case is set for June 21 at 3 p.m.

 

[Seattle1]

Kouri Richins gets new attorneys, proclaims innocence in recordings sent to national media

Richins sent voice recordings to multiple national media outlets maintaining she is innocent, after her attorneys asked to be released from the case.

ksltv.com

5/24/24

[..]

The judge asked Lazaro to ensure that case documents are sent to the new attorneys quickly.

Lewis said it is hard to say how much time she will need to prepare for a preliminary hearing and asked to set a hearing in mid-June where they could schedule the preliminary hearing. That hearing was set for June 21.

[..]

She said the world has not yet heard who she really is, or the real facts of the case and said it is time “to do some serious damage control.”

“Who I really am, and all that matters, is a wife of Eric Richins and a mom to three beautiful boys. What I’ve really done is protect Eric at all cost; what I really didn’t do is murder my husband. I could not, and would not ever do that to Eric, or anyone for that matter. I’m asking the world to give me a chance. Give me a chance to prove it to you,” Richins said.

Richins said she was devastated and shocked her team had to withdraw, and said Lazaro has become like family and it was not the choice of either of them. However, she said it is time to move forward. She said there is work to do and she is ready for the challenge.

 

[Seattle1]

Kouri Richins gets new defense after 'irreconcilable situation' with previous team

Kouri Richins officially has a new defense team.

www.kutv.com

5/24/24

SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — Kouri Richins, accused of murdering her husband with a fentanyl-laced drink in 2022, has a new defense team after her previous attorneys asked to be removed from the case.

At a status hearing Friday, the changeover from Richins' former representation, Ray, Quinney & Nebeker, was made official as 3rd District Judge Richard Mrazik granted a motion to withdraw and appointed new counsel.

Richins' case was handed over to the law firm Nester/Lewis, with attorney Wendy Lewis appearing via WebEx to accept the appointment.

 

[Seattle1]

Kouri Richins asserts innocence in recorded statements

Kouri Richins – the Utah mother and author accused of poisoning and killing her husband with fentanyl – continued to assert her innocence with her first public comments since being take…

www.abc4.com

5/24/24

Just over a year since she was charged with the first-degree aggravated murder of her husband, Eric, Kouri Richins said the world has yet to hear the “real facts of the case.” In a recorded message sent to ABC News, Richins said speaking out for the first time is terrifying but needed.

“The media has twisted and turned what they think they know [into] what will sell or what will get the most views,” said Richins, continuing to say it was time for damage control.

[..]

Richins was recently appointed a new defense team after her previous team, led by Skye Lazaro, withdrew from the case due to an undisclosed “irreconcilable and nonwaivable situation.” State prosecutors, Richins and her new defense team are scheduled to meet again in person before Judge Richard Mrazik on Friday, June 21.

 

[Seattle1]

New Attorneys Appointed for Kouri Richins at Hearing

A clue to the departure of Kouri Richins' previous attorneys may have been a mention of an "indigent defense system."

www.courttv.com

5/24/24

video hearing at link.

 

[SteveS]

The “irreconcilable and nonwaivable situation" that caused KR's attorney's to bail was the fact that KR was totally out of money, and SL-and-friends had no interest in working for free. Nothing mysterious or surprising in that result.

Kouri Richins pending trial delayed indefinitely as new defense team takes murder case

The Kamas mother of three meets with her new attorneys Monday.

www.kpcw.org

 

[Cindizzi]

 

[ch_13]

The “irreconcilable and nonwaivable situation" that caused KR's attorney's to bail was the fact that KR was totally out of money, and SL-and-friends had no interest in working for free. Nothing mysterious or surprising in that result.

Kouri Richins pending trial delayed indefinitely as new defense team takes murder case

The Kamas mother of three meets with her new attorneys Monday.

www.kpcw.org

So what happened to the money that was set aside to pay for her attorneys?

 

[Cindizzi]

 

[Cindizzi]

Kouri Richins vows to prove innocence as new attorneys take over murder case​

BY EMILY ASHCRAFT, KSL.COM AND DANIEL WOODRUFF, KSL TV
KSLTV.com
May 24, 2024, 4:18 PM | Updated: 8:41 pm
PARK CITY — A June preliminary hearing for Kouri Richins, a Kamas mother charged with killing her husband and then writing a children’s book about grief, will be delayed after her new attorneys said they would not have time to go through the large amount of evidence in the case.

In a hearing on Monday, 3rd District Judge Richard Mrazik addressed a motion for her attorneys to withdraw and suggested appointing Wendy Lewis and Kathryn Nester to the case. The withdrawal of Skye Lazaro was made official on Friday, after Jami Brackin, an attorney representing Summit County, said she had no objection to the new attorneys.

The judge asked Lazaro to ensure that case documents are sent to the new attorneys quickly.

Lewis said it is hard to say how much time she will need to prepare for a preliminary hearing and asked to set a hearing in mid-June where they could schedule the preliminary hearing. That hearing was set for June 21.

[…]

Eric Richins’ family responds​

Greg Skordas, a Salt Lake City attorney acting as a spokesman for the family of Eric Richins, said Friday it was “no surprise” Kouri Richins is proclaiming her innocence in these new recordings.

“We know what happened. She knows what happened. A jury will soon know what happened and I trust the judicial system,” Skordas said in an interview with KSL TV.

Skordas said the claims made by Kouri Richins in the audio recordings are “rantings” that are “completely untrue.”

“We know what the evidence is. She should know the evidence by now, and we believe that a jury will have enough evidence to convict her,” said Skordas.

Kouri Richins vows to prove innocence as new attorneys take over murder case