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Preliminary Hearing Continues for Jarvis Butts in Na’Ziyah Harris Disappearance and Murder Case
Jarvis Butts, charged in connection with the disappearance and murder of 13-year-old Na’Ziyah Harris in Detroit, returned to court on Tuesday as his preliminary hearing resumed. The session included testimonies from DNA experts, a witness who discovered Harris’s ID, and a digital forensics specialist. Court proceedings will continue on Wednesday at 10 a.m.
Search Efforts and Key Testimonies
The prosecution presented evidence tying Butts to Harris’s disappearance. George Harris, a Detroit police lieutenant and school safety liaison, testified about initial search efforts, including uncovering text messages between Harris and Butts. The messages indicated that Butts planned to pick her up after school on January 9, 2024.
Detective Antonio Carlisi of the Detroit Police Department homicide unit discussed surveillance footage from a RING camera showing Harris getting off a school bus.
Erica Anderson, a forensic scientist with the Michigan State Police, provided analysis of DNA evidence from clothing, a mattress pad, and other items linked to Harris and Butts.
Discovery of Harris’s ID
Valerie Smith, a witness, testified about finding Harris’s ID at a gas station on Detroit’s west side in March. Smith explained that she had walked past the ID for weeks before eventually picking it up and notifying authorities.
Digital Forensics and Key Evidence
Sergeant Melanie O’Rourke, a digital forensic expert, presented data from Butts’s cell phone records. The data revealed that Butts’s phone was located at the Parkcrest Motel in Harper Woods on January 9 and near 7 Mile and Berg on January 10. The latter location is where clothing believed to belong to Harris was found.
Timeline of Events on January 9
Prosecutors outlined the following timeline:
Morning: Harris attended school, wearing distinct clothing, including light blue jeans and a colorful Rugrats jacket.
Afternoon: Harris communicated with Butts using her school-issued tablet, arranging to meet him after school.
Evening: Surveillance footage showed Harris leaving school and later being seen at an auto repair shop with Butts and a co-worker.
Night: Butts checked into the Parkcrest Motel at 9:30 p.m. Harris was last seen with him that evening.
Additional Testimonies
Tashiana Davis, who was engaged to Butts in 2023, testified that she drove him to the police on February 7 to turn himself in for an unrelated weapons charge. Davis said police later seized Butts’s phone from her car.
When questioned about Butts’s behavior, Davis described him as secretive, particularly about his phone usage. Despite this, she stated she stayed with him because of his good rapport with children.
Wyatt Barnes, a U.S. Border Patrol officer, testified about discovering a pink onesie near 7 Mile and Berg during a search for Harris. He reported the find to authorities due to its condition, which suggested it might be related to the case.
Background and Additional Charges
Harris, 13, disappeared on January 9, 2024. While her body has not been found, Butts was charged with murder and rape in September. Prosecutors allege that Butts groomed Harris in 2022 and that she was pregnant with his child at the time of her death.
In addition to Harris’s case, Butts faces charges of sexually abusing two other minors. One victim, now 20, was reportedly abused between 2012 and 2014, while another victim, now 11, was abused between 2015 and 2017. Butts has also served prison time for sexually assaulting a child in 2004.
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy described Butts as a “classic and expert groomer and pedophile.”
Details from Harris’s School and Witness Accounts
School officer Derek Wolfe testified about taking a missing persons report on January 10 after speaking with Harris’s grandmother. Substitute teacher Marilyn Lee, who taught Harris, confirmed she did not see the teenager in class the following day.
Margaret Lovallo, an evidence technician, detailed her role in examining the scene near 7 Mile and Berg, where some items linked to Harris were recovered.
Next Steps
The hearing will determine whether Butts will face trial for the murder of Harris and the additional sexual assault charges.
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