William Curl Files Appeal in Keller Murder Case

A convicted murder has filed an appeal after a DeKalb County judge refused to give him more time to withdraw his guilty plea in the death of Plainfield teenager Antinette “Toni” Keller.

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William Curl, 37, of DeKalb, had 30 days to withdraw his plea, but did not file a motion until 108 days later. Last month, Judge Robbin Stuckert said she did not have the authority to give him more time, and ruled that he could not take back the deal that got him 37 years in prison.

Now, Curl is appealing Stuckert’s decision, according to the DeKalb Daily Chronicle. His attorney argued he should be given more time because he was being kept in isolation at Stateville Correctional Center and could not contact his lawyer by the 30-day deadline.

He has since been transferred to Menard Correctional Center.

On Monday, DeKalb County Associate Judge John McAdams appointed an appellate public defender to help Curl with his appeal, according to the Chronicle.

Plea deal

In April, Curl took a plea deal in the death of Keller, an 18-year-old freshman at Northern Illinois University. Keller, an art major, disappeared in a DeKalb park in 2010. Her remains were found two days later.

Curl was charged not only with sexually assaulting and murdering Keller, but also with burning her body. 

In April, Curl entered an Alford plea, in which he maintained his innocence but agreed that prosecutors had enough evidence for a jury or judge to find him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Curl was sentenced to 37 years in prison without the possibility of getting time off behavior. He was, however, given credit for the time he spent in the DeKalb County jail. 

Related:

• No Trial in Toni Keller Murder: Killer Cops a Plea
• 'This Could Be Anybody Else's Kid Next Time:' Curl Gets 37 Years in Toni Keller Murder