It was five years this week since 28-year-old Joseph Brinson was shot and killed by the friend of a roommate in a conspiracy that led to the convictions of three people. Brinson was killed after being in dispute with roommate William Irvine, now 31, who later pleaded guilty to 2nd degree murder. Brinson was shot by Blake Quinlan, now 23, and doing life without parole for 1st degree murder as the one accused of pulling the trigger. Brinson was shot at a home on South Mica Mine Gulch Road several miles south of Tiny Town on January 16, 2019.  

Also convicted in the case was Lia Atencio, who was 17 at the time of the killing. Now 22, she admitted to a role in helping to dispose of the body, which was dismembered in the basement of the home and later dumped in Byers.

The family of Joseph Brinson remains upset that she has done little time for the convictions. On Wednesday this week, they plan on protesting the potential of parole for Atencio when she has a hearing about her parole eligibility. 

“This is not somebody who is remorseful,” said Amy Frost, an aunt serving as spokesperson for the family. “I’m going to tell them all of the horrible details of what she’s done to my nephew. I’m going to tell them all of the opportunities that she has squandered — the leniency that the law has given her.”

Atencio played a particularly gruesome role in the coverup of the crime. In addition to going over the home to help place the cut up remains of Brinson in bags, she assisted bringing them out to Byers to dump them. Months later when the three were concerned about the ability to identify Brinson’s remains from dental records, she went out to Byers and retrieved the bag with his severed head and attempted to pull the teeth. Later, she admitted she drove a car over the head after getting frustrated at her inability to remove the teeth. She then moved the head to a different location away from the other remains.

Initially, Atencio was given six years probation for her role after she agreed to testify in the case against the other two defendants on the charges of accessory to crime and tampering with a deceased human body. The cases took a long time during the pandemic to wind through the court system. During much of that, Atencio served jail time, a total of over 700 days. Ultimately when she was given parole, the family says the judge indicated any slipups and she’d be back and sentenced to a potential of 12 years on the two charges. 

In September 2023, Atencio was back in court after being accused in other crimes, including a DUI. A new judge sentenced her to two terms served concurrently, meaning six years rather than 12. The 700-plus days were subtracted as time served and she was sent to prison, where she remains at the La Veta Correctional Facility. But there is parole eligibility after half of time is served and in Colorado and more credit is given for each month served, reducing a sentence. Ultimately it means that Atencio is eligible for release in April of this year.

“We support the family’s request that she not be released early,” said Brionna Boatright, spokesperson for the office of First Judicial District Attorney Alexis King, pointing out that the DA had asked for the 12-year sentence.

The family plans to appeal to the parole board to keep Atencio locked up, troubled by the gruesome nature of the crime. 

“I feel like the law has failed Joe in this sense with Lila. And I absolutely feel that she is a danger to the community …The punishment definitely does not fit the crime,” Amy Frost said. “At some point, the well runs dry. You cannot continue to give somebody these opportunities, especially for something so horrific. This is not somebody who needs to be put back out into society.”