Attorneys for Kouri Richins are seeking unredacted indictments against two Utah law enforcement officials, arguing the information could support her request for a new trial.
The defense filed the request Oct. 16 in Third District Court, seeking the full indictments against Wasatch County Sheriff Jared Rigby and former Summit County Sheriff Dave Edmunds, KPCW reported.
A grand jury indicted both men Sept. 24. Redacted versions became public Oct. 7, revealing the charges but withholding details of the accusations.
Rigby faces a second-degree felony obstruction of justice charge and a class B misdemeanor charge of making a written false statement. Edmunds faces a third-degree felony obstruction charge. Both pleaded not guilty Oct. 7, according to KPCW’s coverage of the indictments.
Richins is serving life in prison without parole for killing her husband, Eric Richins, with fentanyl. She was sentenced in May.
Her attorneys say it remains unclear how the obstruction investigation may have affected her murder case. They have raised concerns about possible judicial bias because Judge Richard Mrazik oversees proceedings in both cases.
An independent judge previously reviewed separate bias allegations and found no evidence Mrazik was unfair, according to KPCW’s Oct. 2 report. Mrazik set Oct. 16 as the deadline for further filings supporting the new-trial request.
Prosecutors accuse Rigby of trying to discredit Detective Eric Mainord, who investigated the Richins case and briefly challenged Rigby for sheriff. Mainord withdrew from the race and did not testify at Richins’ trial, KPCW reported.
Separately, KPCW reported that investigators found deleted Jan. 21 texts between Rigby and Richins’ media adviser, Greg Hall. Hall had told the station that he and Rigby had not communicated after an early January meeting about campaign services.
The affidavit does not disclose the messages’ contents or establish who deleted them. Hall has not been charged, and KPCW said he did not respond to its requests for comment about the texts.
In earlier reporting, Hall denied knowing about a conflict between Rigby and Mainord when he offered campaign help. Rigby’s attorney, Blake Hamilton, said his client did not discuss Richins or Mainord with Hall. Rigby has maintained that he acted within the law.
Attorneys for Rigby and Edmunds have argued that releasing the full indictments could jeopardize their clients’ right to a fair trial, Utah News Dispatch reported.
A Nov. 4 hearing is scheduled to address whether the withheld portions should become public.
