Man accused of killing local mom pleads not guilty

Prosecutors have 90 days to decide whether to seek the death penalty against a man who has pleaded not guilty to killing his fiancee.

Patrick Frazee entered the plea Friday in the death of 29-year-old Kelsey Berreth, starting the clock on the 90-day deadline under Colorado law.

District Attorney Dan May said the law only allows prosecutors to seek capital punishment if at least one of over a dozen factors in the law is met. He didn’t say whether any of them apply to Frazee.

The factors include things like killing someone in an especially heinous way or forming an agreement to kills someone. Frazee is charged with murder and three counts of solicitation to commit murder.

Frazee's next trial date has been set for October 28th at 8:30 a.m.

A consumptive testing hearing will take place on June 14th at 9 a.m. and a motions hearing is set for August 23rd at 9 a.m.

The trial is expected to last three weeks.

The man accused of killing a southern Colorado mom could enter a plea in court Friday. Investigators believe Patrick Frazee beat his fiance to death with a baseball bat on Thanksgiving.

Kelsey Berreth was last seen at a Safeway in Woodland Park on Nov. 22. According to arrest papers, authorities believe their 15-month-old daughter was in Berreth's townhome in Woodland Park when Frazee killed Berreth.

Investigators say Frazee's girlfriend told them he used a baseball bat to fatally beat Berreth, then burned her body and planned to dump the remains in a landfill or river.

Investigators have searched both Berreth's and Frazee's homes and a landfill in Fountain but her body has not been found. The Woodland Park Police Department announced they were ending the landfill search in April.

Police want to make it clear the investigation is not over and they are "committed to bringing justice to Kelsey's family."

32-year-old Frazee is being held in jail without bond before his trial.