Karen Grammer was the younger sister of actor Kelsey Grammer, best known for his role as Dr. Frasier Crane in the sitcoms Cheers and Frasier. She was brutally murdered in 1975 when she was only 18 years old by three men who kidnapped her after a failed robbery attempt. Her death was one of the most shocking and horrific crimes in Colorado Springs history, and it left a lasting impact on her family and the community.
Contents
The Kidnapping and Murder of Karen Grammer
On July 1, 1975, Karen Grammer was waiting for her boyfriend to finish his shift at a Red Lobster restaurant on South Academy Boulevard in Colorado Springs. She had moved there from New Jersey a few months earlier, after graduating from high school. She was working as a waitress at another restaurant and had plans to attend college in the fall.
Around 10 p.m., three men entered the Red Lobster with the intention of robbing it. They were Michael Corbett, a former soldier based at Fort Carson; Freddie Glenn, a teenage civilian who worked at the base; and Larry Dunn, an accomplice. However, they found that the restaurant had already closed and there was no money in the cash register. They decided to take Karen as a hostage instead, hoping to use her as leverage to get money from her boyfriend or the restaurant manager.
They forced Karen into their car and drove away. Corbett sexually assaulted her several times while they drove around the city, looking for a place to dump her. They eventually took her to a mobile home park, where Glenn stabbed her in the throat, back and hand with a bayonet. Karen managed to crawl out of the car and run towards a nearby trailer, but she collapsed before reaching it. She bled to death from her wounds.
The trailer’s owner called 911, and the detectives arrived to find her bloody corpse with her eyes open, a gaping wound on the left side of her neck, and hair matted with blood and dirt. The medical examiner noted she died from a severed carotid artery and counted four additional stab wounds in her back.
The police did not know her name for a week until her brother, Kelsey, reported her missing. He had been studying theater at Juilliard in New York when he received a call from his sister’s boyfriend, who told him that she had not shown up for work or contacted him for several days. Kelsey flew to Colorado Springs and identified his sister’s body at the morgue. He later said that he felt guilty for not being there to protect her.
The Trial and Conviction of Karen Grammer’s Killers
The police quickly identified Corbett, Glenn and Dunn as the suspects in Karen’s murder, as well as two other killings that occurred in June 1975. They had shot and killed Daniel Van Lone, a hotel cook, during a robbery that netted them only 50 cents; and they had killed Winfred Proffitt, another Fort Carson soldier, with a bayonet.
Corbett and Glenn were arrested in July 1975, while Dunn was apprehended in August. They were tried separately in 1976. Corbett confessed to his involvement in all three murders and testified against Glenn and Dunn in exchange for a plea deal. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Glenn was convicted of first-degree murder for killing Karen Grammer and Winfred Proffitt, and second-degree murder for killing Daniel Van Lone. He was sentenced to death by lethal injection. However, when Colorado abolished capital punishment in 1978, his sentence was commuted to life in prison with the possibility of parole after ten years.
Dunn was convicted of second-degree murder for killing Karen Grammer and sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after ten years.
The Aftermath of Karen Grammer’s Death
Karen Grammer’s death had a profound effect on her family and friends, as well as on the public. Her brother Kelsey said that he lived with tragedy every day of his life and that he leaned on his faith to cope with his grief. He also said that he forgave his sister’s killers but did not want them to be released from prison.
Karen’s death also inspired John Suthers, the former Colorado Attorney General and current mayor of Colorado Springs, to become a prosecutor. He said that he wanted to seek justice for victims like Karen and their families.
Karen’s killers have remained behind bars for more than four decades. Corbett died of natural causes at a Denver hospital in 2019. Glenn has been denied parole several times, most recently in 2014, when Kelsey Grammer testified against him via video link. He is eligible for parole again in 2021. Dunn has also been denied parole several times and is eligible for parole again in 2022.
Karen Grammer’s memory lives on in the hearts of those who knew and loved her, as well as in the minds of those who were shocked and saddened by her tragic fate. She was a young woman with a bright future, who was taken away too soon by senseless violence. Her story is a reminder of the preciousness of life and the need for compassion and justice.
