In a stunning decision to conclude the defense’s case, defendant Kouri Richins waived her right to testify, and her lawyers rested without calling a single witness to the stand.

Kouri Richins, 35, is accused of murdering her husband, Eric Richins, by lacing a cocktail with a ᴅᴇᴀᴅly dose of fentanyl in 2022. Prosecutors say she killed Eric Richins to cash in on his life insurance policy and have presented evidence that she was having an affair. She has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

The jury will return on Monday to hear closing arguments before they begin deliberating murder charges against the mother of three.

The State rested its case on Thursday after calling Detective Jeff O’Driscoll, who testified about the investigation and highlighted the evidence that led police to suspect that the defendant had a role in her husband’s untimely death.

During cross-examination, Kathryn Nester emphasized what police have not been able to determine, including where the fentanyl that killed Eric Richins came from, how it was administered, what he ingested that made him sick when he was allegedly poisoned the first time and the dates and times of the allegedly incriminating Google searches.

Earlier on Thursday, the lawyers engaged in what appeared to be a legal version of high-stakes poker. In a lengthy exchange, the defense debated whether it could elicit testimony from O’Driscoll about statements made by David Norris, a witness who purportedly contacted the Summit County Sheriff’s office with information that Eric Richins had sought to obtain fentanyl.

The judge was not inclined to let the defense go there with O’Driscoll and the State countered with an objection that any information elicited about Norris should open the door to previously suppressed statements by Hayden Jeffs and Nick Bonsavage.

Hayden Jeffs worked as a handyman for Kouri Richins’s house flipping business. Before he was killed in a motorcycle accident in 2024, he told investigators that the defendant had allegedly asked him for fentanyl. Prosecutors also referenced a jail call with Nick Bonsavage, an ᴀssociate of the Richins’ housekeeper, Carmen Lauber, in which he refers to Lauber making money from the sale of fentanyl. Lauber previously testified that Kouri Richins asked her for illegal drugs on multiple occasions.

The defense asked for a break to discuss the matter with their client and informed the court that they would hold off on trying to admit that testimony. Before the lunch break, defense lawyers said they had several witnesses ready to testify, but ultimately declined to call any of them.