After losing the Kuri Richens case, the veteran public defender is preparing for a new high-stakes trial over the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
Kuri Richens convicted of poisoning her husband in Utah murder case
Kouri Darden Richens was found guilty of poisoning her husband, Eric Richens, in Utah after a jury deliberated for just over three hours.
Defense attorney Kathryn Nester stood next to her client, out of view of courtroom cameras, as a Utah judge announced that a mother of three had been found guilty of poisoning her husband with a fentanyl-laced cocktail.
Nestor, an award-winning veteran public defender from the South, gained national attention as the leader of the defense team defending Koori Darden Richens. During the weeks-long trial, she sparred with the judge, challenged prosecutors and fiercely cross-examined witnesses.
But the defense rested without calling any witnesses, prompting speculation online that Richins might appeal based on ineffective assistance of counsel if he loses.
Nestor lost the case. Richins was found guilty of first-degree aggravated murder, attempted aggravated murder, forgery and insurance fraud in the death of her husband, Eric.
Nestor is currently preparing for the trial of another high-profile client, Tyler Robinson, who is accused of assassinating Charlie Kirk.
legal “coincidence”
Nester was appointed as Richins’ attorney in May 2024, days after the law firm that had represented Richins for more than a year withdrew from the case, KPCW reported.
A spokesperson for the Summit County Attorney’s Office did not respond to a request for comment from USA TODAY about why that decision was made. However, County Manager Shane Scott told KPCW that while Richins’ attorney was not the cheapest option, the county decided the county should pay more up front to ensure she gets a fair trial without legal issues.
“First and foremost, we don’t want anything like this to happen again,” Scott told the outlet.
Before Mr. Richins’ trial began, another high-profile client came to Mr. Nestor’s lap. She was selected to represent Mr. Robinson in September 2025 because he could not afford a lawyer. County Commissioner Ezra Nile said the local public defender’s office doesn’t handle death penalty cases, so the county had to look elsewhere.
Greg Skordas, a Utah criminal defense attorney, independent county consultant and KSL News Radio host, supported Nestor’s selection. He said most of the qualified lawyers were already working on other death penalty cases at the time, so his options were fairly limited.
“I’m not saying we had to go to great lengths to get Kathy Nestor. She’s a great lawyer. She’s one of the best in Utah,” he said. “But we didn’t have a lot of options on both sides that we could and would do that. People were saying they could never get involved in this case for reasons like fear for their families.”
Skordas said he was confident Nestor could juggle both clients, but that “it was more of a coincidence than anything that she had two of the biggest criminal cases in Utah going on at the same time.”
Who is Kathryn Nestor?
Jim Kitchens, who worked with Nester in Mississippi at the beginning of his long legal career, spoke highly of Nester’s experience and skills.
“My guess is that there is no better lawyer anywhere in America than Kathy Nestor,” Kitchens said.
Kitchens said Nester graduated from the University of Texas School of Law in 1992 and moved to Mississippi around that time because of her husband’s job. Kitchens said he met Nestor through the Mississippi Trial Lawyers Association and named her Trial Lawyer of the Year in 2001. He said he worked with her on both criminal and civil cases.
“She was just born to litigate cases in court,” he said. “She’s a natural. She was very, very smart and prepared in every way to be a great trial lawyer.”
Nester did not respond to requests for an interview from USA TODAY. However, she told the Jackson Free Press in 2010 that she dreamed of becoming a lawyer after watching “Perry Mason” as a child. She told the outlet that she likes “fighting for the underdog.”
“No matter who you are, whether you are rich or poor, no matter what crime you committed, you are entitled to a fair trial and a quality defense,” she said. “That’s what we all deserve in our system.”
Kitchens said Nester eventually left the firm to start his own firm and became an assistant federal public defender for the Southern District of Mississippi in 2005. “I would say she was the star of that office,” said Kitchens, who later became a state Supreme Court justice.
Mr. Nestor led the federal public defender’s office for 10 years, first in Salt Lake City and then in San Diego, which Mr. Kitchens described as a “very active firm” with more than 130 staff. So in several scathing letters to then-Senator Kamala Harris, she called for stronger measures to protect federal detainees from COVID-19.
Nester returned to Utah in 2022 and founded a law firm with friend and former colleague Wendy Lewis, according to the firm’s website. The firm said Nester has been married to her middle school sweetheart for more than 35 years and is the “proud mother” of two daughters and a son-in-law, all of whom work in the law field.
“In her spare time, Kathy enjoys singing in her church choir, watching good movies, solving puzzles, and traveling near water,” the company’s website says.
In Utah, Nestor’s southern roots continue to shine through. At one point early in Richins’ trial, Nester said she would try to refrain from using “you guys” in cross-examination, over objections from prosecutors.
“This is a Southern thing,” she told the judge. “You guys are just in my blood.”
Nester has an “excellent track record” of challenging cases and high-profile clients
Mr. Nester has tried more than 60 jury trials, including death penalty cases, complex fraud, sex crimes, drug and weapons cases, according to his law firm. “She’s a very aggressive defense attorney. She has a good track record. She has a very good track record of winning some pretty difficult cases,” Skordas said.
Among her higher-profile clients is Michael Kirk Moore, a Utah doctor accused of forging COVID-19 vaccination certificates and destroying more than $28,000 worth of government-provided COVID-19 vaccines. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi dropped the case against him in July.
According to federal court records, she represented Lyle Jeffs, a former leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, an unrecognized offshoot of the Mormon Church. Jeffs pleaded guilty to food stamp fraud and failure to appear in court and was sentenced to 57 months in prison.
Mr. Nester also represented John Earnest, who faced capital murder charges after opening fire at the Chabad of Poway synagogue in suburban San Diego County in 2019, killing one person. Nestor and the San Diego Federal Guard declined to represent Ernest in 2020 due to the dispute. Ernest later pled guilty and was sentenced to life in prison.
Polarization of the defense in the Richins case
Several times during Richins’ trial, Judge Richard Mrajczyk shut down Nester’s arguments and counterarguments, at one point urging him to “stay focused” and at other points not discussing Nester. When Mr. Nester told Mradzik that a member of the prosecution had been seen “making faces at the jury during cross-examination,” Mr. Nester said, “With all due respect, I know more about this than any camera. I’ve never seen anything like that.”
The defense’s decision not to call witnesses was particularly controversial. Sky Lazzaro, Richins’ former attorney, told KUTV that while it was probably the right thing to do, not calling witnesses meant “no one went to bat for her. That’s really, really hard to overcome.”
Still, Lazarus said, “I think the defense attorneys in this case did a very good job. They fought very hard for her.”
Skordas, who is also a spokesperson for Eric Richins’ family, said he was surprised that Nestor did not call any witnesses during the trial, but thought he did a good job defending his client.
Even if he loses, he isn’t worried. “I think she’s a fighter. I think she’ll bounce back.”
Contributed by: Reuters
