The three young sons of Utah kids grief author Kouri Richins said they are terrified of her and want her to spend the rest of her life in prison, prosecutors revealed — as they argued she should never be allowed parole for poisoning her husband.
“I’m afraid if she gets out, she will come after me and my brothers, my whole family,” her eldest son, now 13, said according to prosecutors. “I think she would come and take us and not do good things to us, like hurt us.”
The 35-year-old mom — who was convicted in March of killing hubby Eric Richins by dosing his cocktail with fentanyl — faces a maximum of life in prison without the possibility of parole at her sentencing Wednesday, the same day that would have been Eric’s 44th birthday.
However, a judge could also give her 25 years to life, which would make her eligible for parole.
Prosecutor Brad Bloodworth in papers filed Monday asked for the harshest sentence possible for Kouri, saying she is “irredeemable” and arguing it’s best for her three young sons if she’s never freed.
Kouri’s sons were 5, 7 and 9 when she murdered their dad and eventually landed herself in jail for the crime.
That was after she wrote a children’s book, “Are You With Me?”, which she said was meant to help her boys with the grief of losing their dad.
Kouri’s boys all said they fear for their safety and that of their loved ones if their mom were to be freed one day, according to Bloodworth’s filing.
“I miss my dad, but I do not miss how my life used to be, I don’t miss Kouri, I will tell you that,” the oldest son said, apparently opting out of calling her mom or mother.
They are being cared for by Eric’s family, who long fought to have police investigate his death as a murder.
The boys have been in therapy ever since Kouri was arrested and the Division of Child and Family Services found the oldest child had been physically and emotionally abused by Kouri, Bloodworth said.
And Kouri used her middle son as a false alibi the night of Eric’s death, claiming she was in his room helping him fall asleep when Eric died from a Moscow Mule Kouri gave him that was laced with five times the lethal dose of fentanyl.
The move “condemned her child to be a material witness,” Bloodworth argued.
The middle boy, who is now 12, lamented that Eric wouldn’t be there for everyday events and or significant moments in his life.
“He can’t be my coach anymore and can’t be at any of my games. He won’t be at my birthdays. he can’t teach me how to drive,” the middle child said.
He also advocated for his mom’s imprisonment saying, “I will not feel safe is [she is] out … with her in jail, I will be able to continue to feel safe and live a happy and successful life without fear of [her] hurting me or anyone I love.”
The youngest son — who was in preschool when his dad was killed — said “[w]hen someone talks about Kouri it makes me feel hateful and ashamed. She took away my dad.”
“If she got out I would be so scared,” the boy said. “I’m worried she would take me away… Once she is gone I will feel happy and I will feel safer and relaxed and trust people more.”
If Richins only served the minimum 25 years behind bars her children would be 30, 35, and 36 when she got out, Bloodworth noted.
“The boys deserve finality and should not have to revisit their father’s murder at future hearings or worry about the defendant’s potential parole,” the prosecutor wrote.
And Kouri has attempted to retaliate against Eric’s sisters, dad and law enforcement from behind bars by lodging false criminal and civil allegations against them, Bloodworth said, noting it showed she felt no remorse for what she did.
Kouri — a failed home flipper — murdered her husband while the kids were home in a bid to inherit Eric’s $4 million estate and run away with her handyman lover.
She dug her real estate company into a hole of millions in debt as she tried to project an image of success, prosecutors claimed.
Two weeks before the murder, Kouri tried to kill Eric by dosing his sandwich with fentanyl, prompting him to suspect she was trying to off him.
Kouri still faces a second trial for alleged financial crimes tied to Eric’s killing.
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