CRIPPLE CREEK – Murder suspect Patrick Frazee is scheduled to appear twice this week for hearings related to his custody battle and his ongoing trial for the murder of Kelsey Berreth.
Thursday morning’s court appearance is a custody hearing for the couple’s daughter, Kaylee. Since Frazee’s arrest, the couple’s daughter has been in the custody of Berreth’s parents. However, Frazee’s mother has also sought to obtain custody of the girl.
In April, the judge ruled that Kaylee will remain with Berreth’s parents for now. Thursday morning’s hearing is closed to the public.
On Friday, there will be another hearing about consumptive testing of evidence in the case. Consumptive testing of evidence relates to evidence that would destroy an entire sample.
As part of our coverage on the case, News5 asked Mark Pfoff, a former detective in the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office who worked on more than 50 homicide investigations, what that testing means.
“You’re usually looking at some form of body fluids, whether it’s blood or saliva or something like that,” Pfoff said.
Pfoff said the amount of evidence is so small, it’s likely not visible to the eye — meaning testing that evidence once would prevent any follow-up testing moving forward.
Frazee is accused of murdering Berreth on Thanksgiving last year at her home in Woodland Park. He’s also accused of trying to have his girlfriend, Krystal Kenney, kill Berreth multiple timesover the course of several months.
<figcaption class="wp-caption-text" id="caption-attachment-114172">Kelsey Berreth was last seen in Woodland Park on Nov. 22nd.The murder trial is scheduled to start on October 28 and is expected to last three weeks.
Recently, the court has considered requests from the defense to heavily restrict the presence and access to the case by media, citing concerns about the possibility of conducting a fair trial. In Colorado, media is not guaranteed access to a courtroom with recording equipment. News organizations must file requests with the presiding judge for coverage.
