US woman gets life without parole for husband’s fentanyl murder

LOS ANGLES – A US woman who drew national attention after publishing a children’s book on grief following her husband’s death has been sentenced to life imprisonment without parole for his murder, according to American media reports. A court found 36-year-old Kouri Richins guilty in March of killing her husband, Eric Richins, by giving him a fatal dose of fentanyl in 2022. During sentencing on Wednesday, Judge Richard Mrazik ruled that she posed a continuing danger to society and should never be released. Prosecutors told the court that Richins mixed the powerful synthetic opioid into a drink served to her husband, allegedly using an amount several times higher than the lethal limit. Investigators said the killing enabled her to collect millions of dollars through inheritance and life insurance benefits. The prosecution further claimed she had earlier attempted to poison her husband by adding fentanyl to a sandwich, which reportedly left him seriously ill. Following her husband’s death, Richins authored a children’s book titled Are You With Me?, which she said was intended to help her three sons cope with their loss. Throughout the trial, Richins denied murdering her husband. Addressing the court before sentencing, she described herself as emotionally shattered and admitted that both she and her husband had been unfaithful during their marriage. Statements from the couple’s children, presented in court through therapists, painted a troubled picture of family life. One child reportedly said he would not feel safe if his mother were released, while another described her as frequently intoxicated and said he did not miss her. The case attracted widespread attention across the US state of Utah because of the unusual circumstances surrounding the murder and the publication of the grief-themed children’s book. President Xi stresses collaboration as high-stake meeting with Trump begins in Beijing