UNION, W.Va. — An Alderson woman convicted of conspiring to kill her husband received a text message from her lover that read “Time to hunt.”
A Monroe County jury deliberated only a half-hour Wednesday in finding Amber Richardson guilty of both accessory to murder and conspiracy.
She was sentenced to life in prison with an additional one to five years on the conspiracy conviction. The judge offered no recommendation of mercy.
Prosecutors alleged Richardson and Joshua Hubbard conspired to kill Danny Ray Richardson in June 2013. His body was found in a shallow grave and revealed two gunshot wounds.
Richardson testified she only wanted a divorce from her husband, but was pushed further by Hubbard. She said she ultimately did what he told her to do, providing clothes and a sleeping bag for him to use in hiding the body.
The defense rested following Amber Richardson’s testimony.
Amber’s father, James Nichols, told the court he doubted his daughter’s story claiming Danny Ray had simply left. Nichols asked his other daughter to file a missing person report, sensing something was amiss.
Nichols said he knew his son-in-law would never leave the three children Amber and Danny Ray had together.
The jury also saw photos of the husband’s body in decay with a bullet wound in the back of his head. The state medical examiner confirmed bullet wounds to head and left arm, along with facial bruising and scalp lacerations.
The prosecution also showed text messages it claimed proved Amber plotted to kill her husband.
The chilling message that stood out most to the prosecution— “Time to hunt.”—allegedly was sent by Hubbard to Amber before the murder.
Hubbard is scheduled to go on trial for murder later in the year.