Patience Marie Frazier pleaded not guilty to a felony charge of manslaughter and gross misdemeanor charge of concealing birth. The plea came during an arraignment hearing in Sixth Judicial District Court on Tuesday. A five-day jury trial has been set for Jan. 7-11, 2019.
The case stems from events that reportedly transpired at the end of April. According to documents, authorities received information regarding a deceased infant allegedly buried on Frazier’s property.
Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office officials requested and were granted a search warrant April 26 for the property at which Frazier lived. They subsequently recovered the body of a deceased infant buried in a shallow grave. The infant was estimated at 28-32 weeks gestation.
Further investigation by law enforcement revealed posts and photos by Frazier on social media around May 24 regarding an event she was “sorry” for that had occurred on or around April 21.
Frazier was taken into custody May 30.
In a preliminary hearing in Justice Court July 12, the court found slight to marginal evidence that the defendant had committed the crimes in question and the case was bound over to the Sixth Judicial District Court for further proceedings and prosecution by the Humboldt County District Attorney’s office.
At the preliminary court hearing on July 12, the judge also approved a motion by the public defender Matthew Stermitz on behalf of the defendant, to release or reduce bail. The bail was reduced to $10,000 cash or bond from an original total amount of $22,500 for the category B felony and gross misdemeanor charges.
Prior to the approval of the motion to reduce or release bail, an argument was filed by the District Attorney’s Office opposing the defendant’s motion for release or reduction of bail, with various contributing factors listed in the argument opposing the motion, including the nature of the offense.
Frazier was released from jail after the reduced bail amount of $10,000 was posted on July 12, 2018.
The criminal complaint against Frazier, filed by Deputy District Attorney Richard Haas, includes one count of manslaughter, a category B felony as defined by NRS 200.220, or as an alternative, one count of manslaughter as defined by NRS 200.10 and one gross misdemeanor charge of concealing a birth.
The first count of manslaughter, a category B felony, is described in the information report as, “The defendant did knowingly, willfully and unlawfully take or use, or submit to the use of any drug, medicine or substance, or any instrument or other means, with the intent to terminate her pregnancy after the 24th week of pregnancy, unless the same is performed upon herself upon the advice of a physician, acting pursuant to the provisions of NRS 442.250 and thereby causing the death of the child of the pregnancy, in the following manner, to-wit: that between the 1st day of April, 2018 and the 1st day of May, 2018, the defendant did, after the 24th week of pregnancy, terminated her pregnancy by beating her abdomen and/or consuming drugs or other substances.”
In the alternative, a charge of manslaughter, a category B felony as defined by NRS 200.210, is described in the report as, “The defendant did knowingly, willfully and unlawfully, killing an unborn quick child, by any injury committed upon the mother of the child, in the following manner, to-wit: that between the 1st day of April, 2018 and the 1st day of May, 2018, the defendant did, after the 24th week of pregnancy, terminate her pregnancy by beating her abdomen and/or consuming drugs or other substances.”
The third count included that of concealing birth, a gross misdemeanor as defined by NRS 199.220, explained as, “that the defendant did knowingly, willfully and unlawfully, conceal the birth of a child by any disposition of its dead body, whether the child died before or after its birth in the following manner: That between the 1st day of April, 2018, and the 1st day of May, 2018, the defendant did conceal the birth of her child by burying the child adjacent to the residence.”
An arraignment hearing was held in Sixth Judicial District Court on July 31, 2018, with Judge Michael Montero presiding. Frazier pleaded not guilty to all charges and waived her right to a speedy trial.
A five-day jury trial for the case was scheduled for Jan. 7-9, 2019 with a pretrial conference set for Nov. 6, 2018 at 9:30 a.m.
