ARIZONA
Yuma Sun
BY JAMES GILBERT, SUN STAFF WRITER
Jan 28, 2006, 11:44 pm
Critical testimony and newly discovered facts in the case of Donald David Frei, a Yuma man sentenced to prison for child abuse, could overturn his conviction, said his attorney.
The 26-page petition for post conviction relief, a document asking Yuma County Superior Court to dismiss the case against Frei, alleges inappropriate relationships among some of the key figures involved in the case, among them accusations that a detective investigating the case and the mother of the victim were romantically involved.
The document, filed by Frei's attorney, Dale Wren, also asserts that the trial prosecutor served on the pastoral council of a Yuma Catholic church that, just the year before, had to pay a large monetary settlement to Frei to resolve a sexual abuse claim.