SEATTLE — King County prosecutors have charged a young man for the third time with murder in his grandmother’s death.
The Seattle Times reports that when Quentin Frazier was a juvenile, he was twice found not competent to stand trial for the March 20, 2006, fatal stabbing of Louise Frazier, 44, at their Skyway home. She was killed when the boy was 13.
Now 22, Frazier was charged for the third time on Monday and booked into jail on a $1 million bail.
County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg said he fears Frazier is a possible danger to the community.
“This case has never left our radar screen,” Satterberg said. “The only way to determine if we have criminal jurisdiction over him is to test his competency again.”
Frazier has made court appearances in two recent misdemeanor cases filed in SeaTac Municipal Court and competency wasn’t raised as an issue, the prosecutor said. In one case, Frazier was accused of assaulting the program director at his group home. Arraignment is scheduled for June 15.
“The concern is his behavior is escalating in a dangerous direction,” Satterberg said.
Frazier’s placement in the group home is voluntary and there “is no institutional control over this young man because he’s twice been found not competent to stand trial,” Satterberg said.
Competency is a legal test, not a medical one, to determine if a defendant understands the legal proceedings and can aid in his or her defense.
In Frazier’s case, prosecutors want to retest his competency to determine if his understanding has changed now that he’s an adult — and the only way to do that is to refile the murder charge.
Satterberg also explained that juveniles can be held for only 90 days during an attempt to restore competency, while adults can be held for a year at Western State Hospital while competency is restored. There is no statute of limitations on murder.
Had he been convicted as a juvenile, Frazier could have been held in custody until his 21st birthday. But court records show the state intended to seek to have his case transferred to Superior Court in 2006 so that Frazier could be prosecuted as an adult. However, he was never arraigned before he was found incompetent.
Louise Frazier was raising Quentin Frazier and his sister when her grandson allegedly stabbed her nine times with a kitchen knife after returning home from school in March 2006, according to the probable-cause statement filed within days of her death.
Quentin Frazier initially told deputies he’d gotten mad at his grandmother, went for a walk and when he returned, found the back door open and his grandmother bleeding on the floor, according to the charges.
He later accused his grandmother of punching him in the face and beating him with a leather belt for getting in trouble at school. He said he grabbed a kitchen knife and stabbed her as they wrestled for the weapon, according to the charges.
