Kouri Richins pleaded no contest last February to assaulting the sister of her late husband two days after his March 2022 death.
The children’s book author is charged with his murder, and Summit County prosecutors say she believed she’d inherit his estate. Richins only learned her husband cut her out of the will and established a trust with his sister as trustee after he died.
When her sister-in-law informed her, Richins allegedly “became enraged” and punched her, court filings say.
She took a plea deal to settle the subsequent misdemeanor charge. Third District Court would dismiss the charge after a year if she abided by its terms.
Prosecutors argued in court March 19 Richins failed to pay a $1,105 plea fee by January 2024 and attend grief counseling or a thinking errors class within 90 days of her no contest plea.
Judge Brendan McCullagh threw out the first allegation because Richins is being held without bail for the duration of her pending murder trial.
“There's an automatic stay while people are in custody to have to pay fees, so the allegation that Ms. Richins violated this plea in abeyance would be that she did not provide to the court, or substantially comply with that order of the court, to provide proof of the completion within those 90 days,” he said March 19.
So McCullagh scheduled an evidentiary hearing for May 13, two days before a hearing will decide if Richins is put on trial for murder.
Ahead of the evidentiary hearing, the defense has provided receipts from a counselor for the required sessions, and prosecutors have subpoenaed that counselor.
