Investigator hired by family of convicted killer Patrick Frazee claims his trial was ‘skewed’

TELLER COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) -- For the first time, the investigative team hired by the family of Patrick Frazee to look into the convicted killer’s case and trial is speaking publicly on their findings. 

The Teller County man was found guilty of killing his fiancée, Kelsey Berreth.

Berreth, who was also the mother of Frazee’s daughter, was last seen on Thanksgiving Day 2018. Her disappearance prompted a statewide search before Frazee was arrested and charged with her murder.

In 2019, Frazee was found guilty of Berreth's murder, three counts of solicitation of murder, and one count of tampering with a deceased body. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Dan Corsentino, the former Pueblo County Sheriff and the director of DC Investigations & Security based out of Pueblo, says he was hired on by Patrick’s mother Sheila Frazee, to review her son's case. Corsentino told 13 Investigates that Frazee’s mother retained his investigative teams' services nearly two years ago for an undisclosed financial amount.

During an episode of the Crime Curious podcast, Corsentino said there is another side of the story that remains untold. 

“At this point, his side of the story has not been told,” Corsentino said. “I think you'll find (Frazee’s story) to be very different than what the prosecution has convicted him on.”

A significant part of the state's case against Frazee came from testimony by his former secret girlfriend, Krystal Lee. Lee said Frazee tried to get her to murder Berreth multiple times before Frazee beat Berreth with a baseball bat.

Lee pleaded guilty to tampering with a deceased human body in exchange for testifying against Frazee. She testified that Frazee told her to drive down from Idaho to Woodland Park to assist in the cleanup and disposal of Berreth’s remains. 

“I can't get into where our investigation is with her, what our thoughts were in regards to the FBI, CBI,” Corsentino said. “I can tell you that she probably was the most uncredible individual in the case and for the prosecution to make her the cornerstone of their case. We believe that was not good judgment.”

Corsentino said he composed a team of former law enforcement professionals with more than 150 years of experience to review the case. The former Pueblo County sheriff said his team was tasked with reviewing around 25,000 pages of discovery, which included all of the interviews, statements, testimony, and evidentiary findings from the Frazee case. 

Based on their findings, Corsentino said on the podcast that he feels Frazee’s trial was “skewed.”

In their brief of appeal filed in March of 2021, Frazee's defense team brought up seven issues with their client's murder trial and the prosecution's case. Some of these issues include testimony from key law enforcement witnesses, evidence introduced during the middle of the trial, and the impartiality of three jurors. 

 “There is no doubt in this case that there was discussion (between jurors) leaning towards what we believe was an unfavorable outcome for Mr. Frazee in the pre-deliberation stage.”

Frazee's appellate defense team now requests that the judgment of conviction be reversed and the felony murder conviction is vacated.

In the Colorado Attorney General's response to Frazee's appeal, they request that the appellate courts affirm the convictions.

During an Oral Arguments Hearing in the Colorado Court of Appeals in Denver last month, Frazee's defense and the Colorado AG's office had 15 minutes to present their cases.

Judges on the Court of Appeals division hearing the case are Stephanie Dunn, Matthew D. Grove, and Timothy J. Schutz. The three judges will not immediately provide an opinion on the case.

According to a spokesperson with the Colorado Judicial Department, it can take weeks or maybe months before an opinion on the appeal is rendered.

The 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office declined to comment on Corsentino’s comments. A spokesperson for the DA’s office said it would be inappropriate for them to comment while the appeal process is ongoing.