By Michael Armstrong

Homer Independent Press

The man accused of kidnapping and murdering Anesha “Duffy” Murnane will drop his “not guilty” plea.

At a hearing held by Kenai Superior Court Judge Kelly Lawson in Kenai on Wednesday, the lawyer for Kirby Calderwood said he had filed that day a notice of intent for a change of plea. The lawyer, Michael Moberly, did not offer any more details at the hearing. 

According to online court records, that filing was recorded late on Wednesday, but it could not be reviewed before the close of business.

Lawson set a hearing to consider the change of plea for 4 p.m. Feb. 5 at the Kenai Courthouse.

Calderwood, 35, attended his hearing by telephone from Wildwood Pretrial Facility, where he has been held since being extradited in November 2022 from Ogden, Utah, where he moved after living in Homer. He faces charges of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, kidnapping, tampering with physical evidence and manslaughter.

Murnane’s uncle, Michael Huelsman, attended the hearing, and has been the designated representative for her family. In an email, Huelsman sent a copy of a prosecution change-of-plea offer in which Calderwood would plead guilty to a charge of second-degree murder and be sentenced to 87 active years in jail. With possible one-third time off for good behavior, Calderwood would have to serve almost 60 years in jail and would be in his 90s before he could possibly be released. 

“I can say that I believe this is the substance of the offer. I believe this is the offer that the defense accepted in principle,” Huelsman wrote.

The exact details of the plea agreement could not be confirmed at press time.

If the change of plea agreement is accepted, Calderwood would then be sentenced at a hearing to be held in Homer at a future date to be determined. At Wednesday’s hearing, Lawson said she would discuss the sentencing date and location at the Feb. 5 hearing.

Murnane went missing Oct. 17, 2019, while she walked from her home at MainTree Housing on Main Street to a doctor’s appointment at Seldovia Village Tribe Health Clinic on East End Road. Friends and family started extensive searches in the Homer area through the fall and into the next year. 

A Homer Presumptive Death Jury declared Murnane dead June 17, 2022, determining her death was most likely a homicide. Homer Police on May 7, 2022, said Calderwood abducted Murnane while she walked on Pioneer Avenue and took her to an unoccupied Homer house where he assaulted and killed her.

This is a developing story.