Kouri Richins, the Utah mother who wrote a children's book about grief after her husband's death, was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison without the possibility of parole for poisoning her husband with fentanyl.

Judge Richard Mrazik handed down the sentence in a Utah courtroom after Richins was convicted in March of aggravated murder, attempted aggravated murder, insurance fraud, and forgery. Prosecutors said she killed her husband, Eric Richins, for financial gain.

Eric Richins, 39, was found dead in bed on March 4, 2022. An autopsy showed he died from fentanyl intoxication, with nearly five times the deadly amount of the drug found in his system.

Prosecutors said Kouri Richins secretly mixed fentanyl into a Moscow Mule drink she gave him at their home near Park City, CBS News reported.

During sentencing, Judge Mrazik said the court had to consider the future safety of the couple's three sons. He explained that Richins first tried to poison her husband on Valentine's Day, then tried again weeks later when the first attempt failed.

"A person convicted of those things is simply too dangerous to ever be free," the judge said.

Kouri Richins Denies Murder

Richins, 35, also received additional prison sentences for attempted murder, insurance fraud, and forgery. The judge ordered the sentences to run consecutively.

Before sentencing, Richins spoke for nearly 40 minutes and mainly addressed her children. Wearing jail clothing and handcuffs, she repeatedly told them she loved them and urged them to "be like your dad."

"I would have never taken him from you," she told her sons while denying the murder charges.

According to ABC News, Richins also said she plans to appeal the conviction and insisted she was innocent. "I will not be blamed for something I did not do," she said.

The hearing became emotional as several of Eric Richins' relatives spoke in court. His sister, Katie Richins-Benson, asked the judge to make sure Richins would never be released from prison, saying the children suffered "permanent trauma."

Statements from the couple's three boys were also read in court. The children said they would not feel safe if their mother were ever released. One son said he feared she could hurt him or his brothers.

Defense attorneys argued for a lighter sentence of 25 years to life, saying Richins should still have the possibility of parole someday. Her family also defended her character and claimed the conviction was unfair.