Conflicting Evidence: Newly released aut0psy findings by Kouri Richins’ relatives are now telling a different story from earlier reports

The courtroom was significantly less packed around 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, when proceedings began on the second day of Kouri Richins’ murder trial.

Attorneys began with a few brief housekeeping matters, including a discussion about the chain of custody, which would be echoed throughout the day. Testimony largely centered around what was — and wasn’t — found in the hours after Eric Richins was discovered dead on March 4, 2022.

The 12 jurors heard from medical experts, law enforcement and first responders who detailed their roles and responsibilities in the death investigation, from securing the scene to performing the autopsy.

Prosecutors called Pamela Sue Ulmer, who was the forensic pathologist with the Utah Office of the Medical Examiner in 2022, as a fact witness in the case.

Ulmer testified to performing Eric’s autopsy around 7:30 a.m. on March 5, 2022, and said he showed no signs of fatal heart disease, stroke or natural causes of death. However, toxicology results revealed a toxic fentanyl level, one she said would be fatal to a person with no prescription or history of using the drug.

The Summit County Attorney’s Office charged Kouri with Eric’s death on May 8, 2023, alleging that she poisoned him with a lethal dose of fentanyl the year before. Defense attorneys, meanwhile, argue it’s unknown how Eric ingested the drug and maintain Kouri was not involved in his death.

Ulmer said Eric did not have a history of illicit drug use or prescription medication abuse at the time of autopsy, so his fentanyl level should have been zero. The fact that it was present told her it had been ingested recently.

On Tuesday, Ulmer said she did not see external evidence of Eric’s death. She looked at his ribs, which were fractured, likely from CPR, and then examined his heart and lungs. Ulmer said Eric had the beginning stages of coronary artery disease, a common condition in adult men, but said it was not significant and there was no indication that he had a blood clot that caused a heart attack.

But Eric’s respiratory system showed signs of distress, which Ulmer attributed to the fentanyl overdose. She also noted there were white nodules on the surface of his lungs that developed from the years Eric spent working as a stone mason. However, that wasn’t a factor in his death, and all of Eric’s other major organs looked normal.

Ulmer said the tests for fungal ailments and allergies, which Eric was known to have, that may have caused anaphylaxis, were negative. Eric did test positive for COVID-19, but Kouri had said the family recently recovered and Ulmer affirmed it was not connected to his death.

The medical examiner’s officer also listed the medications Eric was prescribed, though he was not necessarily taking them regularly, including opiate pain medication from 2016, an antibiotic from 2019, and two forms of “antiabuse” medication that can be used off-label for chronic symptoms of Lyme disease from 2019 and 2020.

Ulmer did not detect any signs of an allergic reaction, as previously suggested by the defense.

Eric’s death certificate lists the cause of death as drug intoxication from fentanyl, but the manner of death — natural, accident, homicide or suicide — has not been determined. Ulmer said she retired in 2023 before the investigation concluded, and she did not have enough information to be sure, so the designation was left as undetermined.

Jurors also heard from emergency medical personnel who described arriving at the Richins home and finding Eric cold, unresponsive and without a heartbeat. They described their resuscitation efforts, including CPR, advanced airway support and administering Narcan.

Margaret “Maggie” Offret was working part-time in EMS for the Park City Fire District in 2022 when she was dispatched to the Willow Court address. She described walking into the couple’s bedroom and seeing Eric face up on the floor at the foot of the bed. Offret said she thought that was unusual because most people who are dragged to the floor for CPR are at the side of the bed, since it’s easier to get them off from there. Eric was also lying “very straight,” while Offret would have expected his arms to be flailed or his body at an angle.

Defense attorney Wendy Lewis noted Offret was not the first person to the scene, and someone else could have arranged Eric’s body before she arrived.

Offret also testified that Eric’s heart rhythm was a flat line with no activity at all. She was the person who told Kouri that Eric was deceased. Lewis asked Offret if she had seen various reactions from silent shock to hysteria regarding how people react to the news that a loved one has died, and Offret affirmed.

Earlier in the day, Summit County Sheriff’s Deputy Vincent Nguyen testified that he did not think Kouri’s emotional reaction was typical. He said at other death calls, people have tears, look at the officer and are direct when asked a direct question.

“Every time I spoke to Ms. Richins, it just seemed like her face was in her hands, and I couldn’t see her face,” Nguyen said, adding that he leaned down to try to see her emotions on the morning Eric died, “but it was just a little abnormal.”

Defense attorney Alexander Ramos asked the deputy how many times he had encountered Kouri experiencing the loss of a loved one and said he couldn’t know what she was feeling.

Nguyen also testified about the chain of custody.

Ramos questioned him about the death investigation checklist, which tells law enforcement to secure the scene, use a crime scene log, photograph the scene and not disturb the scene. The attorney also questioned Nguyen about how information was communicated between law enforcement.

The deputy acknowledged the Richins home was “semi-secured” while he was there, but reiterated he followed the proper procedures. His job was to fill out the death certificate, which was logged into the case file and accessible to those who needed it.

Deputy David Pimentel was similarly questioned about his role and responsibility while responding to Eric’s death. Pimentel said he was tasked with the medical log listing medications the deceased would have in their possession and attempted to find the items in the bathroom.

He and other witnesses testified that their search was limited to a small area of the home until a warrant could be obtained. They did not find any drugs or paraphernalia during their initial response, but later searches recovered THC gummies as well as other items from drawers, cabinets and clothing.

Defense attorneys seemed to be making a point throughout the day’s testimony that there was a weakness in the chain of collection.

The last witness of the day was lead crime scene technician Chelsea Gipson. She arrived at the Richins’ home on March 4 with other law enforcement. While the Office of the Medical Examiner was finishing up its investigation, Gipson was responsible for documenting the scene and looking for anything that could explain his death. She testified that she did not find any drugs or drug paraphernalia in the home upon her initial visit.

Later, Gipson would put together a 3-D scan of the home that allows investigators to virtually be there. She marked where items of “significant value” were found in the home on the model, and displayed the evidence to the jury, including several cellphones, prescription bottles, marijuana gummies, a set of tweezers and a small piece of plastic and several documents.

Day three of the trial will start with the defense’s cross-examination of Gipson.

Other witnesses called to testify:

• Cameron Larson, who was on an assignment with the Office of the Medical Examiner in the Summit County area in 2022. She was called to the home around 6:30 a.m. on March 4 to examine the deceased. She was responsible for putting Eric in the body bag with any items, such as medication, and sealing it.
• Sgt. Andy Crnich, a volunteer first responder with the South Summit Fire District in 2022. He placed a tube in Eric’s airway and then helped look for medications in the home. Crnich said it was apparent Eric had been deceased for some time.
• Maggie Mobley, a morgue clerk in 2022, testified to receiving Eric’s body. She was responsible for “breaking the seal,” taking photos and inventory, and putting the deceased in the cooler.
• Allyson Christensen was an autopsy assistant and autopsy technician supervisor in March 2022. She said she was responsible for handling Eric’s toxicology samples.