Sheriff, former sheriff charged with obstruction of justice related to Kouri Richins case: Filings
A current sheriff and a former sheriff of two Utah counties have been charged with obstruction of justice in connection with the Kouri Richins murder case, according to court filings related to heavily redacted, newly unsealed indictments.
Kouri Richins was found guilty of murdering her husband in March. The high-profile weekslong trial in Summit County followed a yearslong investigation that garnered national attention.
A former Summit County sheriff and the sheriff of neighboring Wasatch County face charges related to Kouri Richins' prosecution, according to defense motions seeking that the indictments be redacted upon release due to the highly publicized murder trial.
Wasatch County Sheriff Jared Rigby was charged with one count of obstruction of justice in a criminal proceeding, a second-degree felony, and one count of making a written false statement, a misdemeanor. The indictment alleges that he made, presented or used a knowingly false item in January "with intent to hinder" a prosecution.
David Edmunds, who served as the sheriff of Summit County from 2003 to 2014, was charged with one count of obstruction of justice in a criminal investigation, a third-degree felony, according to the indictment. The indictment alleges that he provided false information "with intent to hinder" an investigation on March 13.
Both indictments, which were filed last month, were unsealed Wednesday with significant redactions.
According to Rigby's motion, the charges against him "allege interference" in the Kouri Richins case over an anonymous letter postmarked Jan. 10, 2026. The filing does not detail the contents of the letter, who wrote it or to whom it was addressed.
According to Edmunds' motion, the language in his indictment "names the Richins prosecution and connects the anonymous letter to alleged misconduct by a Summit County sheriff's deputy." The indictment accuses Edmunds of making a false statement "intended to hinder identification of the letter's author," the filing states.
Both men have pleaded not guilty, according to ABC Salt Lake City affiliate KTVX.
ABC News has reached out to their attorneys and the Wasatch County Sheriff's Office for comment but did not immediately receive a response. Rigby has previously said he acted lawfully.
$55 million in damages
A Summit County jury found Kouri Richins guilty of fatally poisoning her husband, Eric Richins, with fentanyl in March. Judge Richard Mrazik, who presided over the murder trial, sentenced her to life without parole.
The 36-year-old mother of three, who self-published a children's book on grieving following her husband's death in 2022, is currently seeking a new criminal trial. Her request is under consideration by the Utah Court of Appeals.
This week, Judge Mrazik ordered that she pay more than $55 million in damages to the estate and family members of her late husband in a wrongful death claim.
In his order, Mrazik noted that Kouri Richins did not dispute any of the factual statements in the motion for judgment, which sought an order concluding that she "wrongfully caused" her husband's death.
The judge stated in his order that he concluded from the guilty verdict and the "undisputed record evidence" that Kouri Richins caused her husband's death by poisoning him.
The order includes $10,780,129 in economic damages and $3 million in non-economic damages -- $1 million for each Richins child -- that "seek to compensate wrongful death victims for loss of society, love, companionship, protection, guidance, and affection."
"Eric shared deep, emotional connections with his three minor children, who are the Estate’s only heirs," the order stated. "His death has caused them severe trauma, and it will have permanent effects on each. In addition, by killing Eric, which resulted in her imprisonment, Kouri deprived the minor children of being with their father or their mother."
The order also included $41,340,387 in punitive damages, which were determined by multiplying the economic and non-economic damages by three.
