Berit Beck Murder Suspect Pleads To Second Degree Reckless Homicide Charge

Update:

Dave and Diane Beck (pictured) won’t have to sit through a four-week jury trial to see if justice will be done for their daughter Berit who was killed in Fond du Lac in 1990. Sixty-four-year-old Dennis Brantner entered an Alford plea Friday morning to a second degree reckless homicide charge. He then waived the statute of limitations on the charge, which was six years in 1990. That means he can be sentenced on March 1st. Diane Beck had just about given up hope that the murderer of her little girl would answer for the crime. She says. “At 27 ½ years it is something I had actually given up on. I didn’t think we would ever see resolve with this case and I’m so thankful for all of them for pursuing it.” She thanked the Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s investigators and the prosecutors who stuck with the case over the years.  District Attorney Eric Toney was going to introduce new evidence they’ve gathered since a June 2016 jury trial ended with a hung jury. That included the testimony of a prison inmate who spent some time with Brantner in a hospital and asked Brantner if he committed the murder. Toney says, “Mr. Brantner said something to the effect of yeah I did it but they can’t retry me and they will never be able to prove it because a fingerprint isn’t enough.” With the current sentence Brantner is serving for drug possession and time added for Beck’s murder he could end up serving a total of 13 years and 2 months in prison. He would be 75-years-old when he gets out of prison.

Fond du Lac County Sheriff Mick Fink, Deputy District Attorney Dennis Krueger and District Attorney Eric Toney.

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The Kenosha trucker suspected of killing 18-year-old Berit Beck in Fond du Lac in July of 1990 has pled to a second degree reckless homicide charge. Dennis Brantner entered an Alford plea Friday morning in Fond du Lac County Court. The plea is not an admission of guilt, but acknowledges that if tried he would likely be found guilty. After the hearing Berit’s mother, Diane Beck, told reporters, “At 27 ½ years it is something I had given up on.” She thanked the investigators and prosecutors who worked on the case over the years. The 64-year-old Brantner will be sentenced on March 1st.