SUMMIT COUNTY, Utah — On the day a judge rejected a motion to dismiss the case against Kouri Richins, her brother defended his sister despite the allegations that she killed her husband by poisoning him with fentanyl.
“The allegations, they’re hard to listen to. But at the same time I know that they’re just that. They’re just allegations," said Rodney Darden.
On Friday, Judge Richard Mrazik heard several motions regarding Richins' right to a fair trial and witness tampering.
The state argued that it is imperative that Richins have no contact with her relatives after what's become known as the "Walk the Dog" letter was discovered during a jail cell search by authorities.
Prosecutors say Richins instructed Darden to "testify falsely" during the trial in the six-page handwritten letter to her mother. Richins claims the letter was simply an excerpt from a fictional book she was writing.
Skye Lazaro, Richins’ attorney, argued her client’s case should be dismissed, claiming prosecutors crossed a line, saying they characterized Richins as guilty of witness tampering without filing additional charges and that it would impact her right to a fair trial
“The problem is," argued Lazaro, "there is local global national media where the state has interpreted the letter in they want and has put out to the world and all of our potential jurors that Kouri’s lying, that her witnesses are lying, that her theory is false.”
Mrazik dismissed the motion, saying the filing by the state doesn’t impact Richins’ right to a fair trial and that the state did not violate the law.
As for a separate no-contact order requested by prosecutors, Mrazik cited the First Amendment saying the defendant can continue to talk with whomever she wants, including family members, despite the letter.
Following the court session, Darden continued to express worry over the prosecutions actions.
“My biggest fear that we have is finding a jury pool that hasn’t already been tainted by the prosecution," he said.
