Eric Richins' family hired Todd Gabler, a longtime private investigator in Utah, after Richins died of a fentanyl overdose on March 4, 2022, at the home he shared in Kamas, Utah, with his wife and three children. Gabler identified Eric's wife, Kouri Darden Richins, as a suspect in his murder, and his investigation sent troves of information to the Summit County Sheriff's Office. Kouri is now on trial for murder, and Gabler testified on Monday (March 9, day 10) about his work, including a phone conversation he had with her (you can watch a clip of that testimony here @Meghann Cuniff). Kouri's lawyer Kathy Nester cross-examined Gabler, and questioned him about his cooperation with law enforcement to try to further the defense narrative that Richins' family unduly influenced the criminal investigation. Gabler said he "was following the instructions of my client to turn over anything I thought was relevant to the criminal investigation." "This is not my case. My case is in the civil court. Anything that we thought was of value to the criminal case, we turned it over," he testified. "And the police were happy with that?" Nester asked. "I don't know if they were happy or sad or distraught. I have no idea as to their emotional condition," Gabler answered. "They sure never told you to stop," Nester said. "The police never directed me to do anything, and if they had told me to stop, I would have ignored them," Gabler said. "Okay, so you could go in without a warrant, find something, call them, tell them to get a warrant, and they'd come get it?" Nester asked. "I think that's an oversimplification and a vilification. I had permission to enter those premises. I had every right to be there. I didn't need a warrant. I'm not a state actor. I have the permission of the property owner, so I don't agree with your characterization," Gabler answered. "When the cops would show up, did you point out what you were showing them. Were you usually there?" Nester asked. "No. I was there on one occasion when the police showed up. They executed warrants when I was not there. So I only remember one occasion where I found an audio recorder in a dresser drawer that they then recovered by warrant," Gabler answered. "And you waited around and pointed it out to them," Nester said. "I did. .. I never touched the device. ... I don't know if I pointed it out. I think what I did was, on that date, when I saw the recorder and recognized it for what it was, which is not easy, ...I just immediately withdrew. I left my audio recorder going until the police arrived," Gabler said. "I don't recall pointing it out. I recall describing to them where it was." "Okay. Thank you for that clarification," Nester said. You can watch Gabler testify about Kouri's texts with housekeeper Carmen Lauber piquing his interest here @Meghann Cuniff. #law #crime #court #police - @meghannmcuniff