Jarvis Butts Faces Trial for Murder of Na’Ziyah Harris
A judge has ruled that there is sufficient evidence to move Jarvis Butts to trial following a four-day preliminary hearing regarding the case of missing teenager Na’Ziyah Harris.
DETROIT (FOX 2) – The case involving Na’Ziyah Harris will proceed to trial after a judge determined that the evidence met the probable cause threshold.
Judge Aliyah Sabree labeled Butts a “monster” before transferring him to circuit court to face charges of first-degree murder, criminal sexual conduct, and child sexually abusive material.
The preliminary hearing coincided with the one-year anniversary of Harris’s disappearance. Substantial evidence linking Butts to Harris, who was 12 years old when he began grooming her, was presented to the police.
Revelations during the hearing included details of their relationship, highlighted by hundreds of text messages.
Judge Affirms Butts as “the Monster” in Na’Ziyah Harris Murder Case
During the preliminary hearing, the judge expressed belief in the evidence against Jarvis Butts, the accused murderer of Na’Ziyah Harris.
This was the basis for upgrading the criminal sexual conduct charge to first-degree due to Harris’s age.
Butts is scheduled to appear in circuit court for a hearing on Jan. 16.
*Warning: The preliminary hearing contains explicit details of minor sexual grooming. Viewer discretion is advised*
Closing Arguments
The prosecution commenced the closing argument by summarizing the evidence presented over the four days of the hearing.
They cited blood found on the missing teenager’s sweatshirt, discovered in a location visited by Jarvis Butts the day after Na’Ziyah Harris was last seen.
The prosecution also referenced numerous text messages revealing a relationship between them, purportedly leading to Harris’s pregnancy.
Prosecutors alleged that Butts, who was due to surrender for a separate conviction on Jan. 9, was avoiding legal consequences related to impregnating a teenager, ultimately leading to Harris’s murder.
The prosecution’s closing argument highlighted Jarvis Butts’ actions, including documented lies.
The defense countered that the evidence against Butts, lacking a body or any plan to harm Harris, was insufficient to establish cause, let alone secure a conviction.
Additionally, the defense argued that Butts’s location information from the day of Harris’s disappearance was inconclusive in proving his direct involvement. Although he visited a woman he had a relationship with, no one witnessed him with Harris.
The defense also questioned the significance of a small blood stain on a pink jumpsuit presumed to be Harris’s, as the forensic expert expressed difficulty in retesting it.
The defense attorney contends that there is insufficient evidence of Jarvis Butts’s guilt in the murder of Na’Ziyah Harris.
Conclusion of Testimony
After numerous witnesses, four days of testimony, and a plethora of evidence, including text messages, clothing items, and police interviews, the prosecution completed its investigation.
The defense did not present any witnesses, and the judge scheduled closing arguments for the following afternoon.
Insights from Incriminating Text Messages
Sergeant Shannon Jones detailed over a hundred explicit text messages exchanged between Jarvis Butts and Na’Ziyah Harris between 2022 and 2023.
The messages contained plans for sexual encounters, images, and discussions about Harris’s potential pregnancy at the age of 12.
According to Jones, Harris saved Butts’s contact as “Bae for life.”
The final communication between Butts and Harris’s devices occurred in late November.
Clips from Police Interrogation of Butts
On the fourth day, prosecutors aired additional segments from a police interview with Jarvis Butts in June 2024.
Sergeant Shannon Jones interrogated Butts about their relationship, despite Butts denying any physical intimacy, contradicting the message exchanges, and his claims of not seeing Harris on the day she vanished.
Attorneys and defendant Jarvis Butts during the fourth day of the preliminary hearing.
Overview of Preliminary Hearing
Butts faces charges of sexual assault and murder of Harris, who vanished at 13 from Detroit in January. While Harris’s body remains undiscovered, investigators assert sufficient evidence of her demise.
Witnesses at the hearing include Butts’s former fiancée, a digital forensics expert, police officers, the individual who found Harris’s school ID, and Harris’s grandmother.
Access a summary of the third day’s testimony here.
What Happened to Na’Ziyah Harris?
Na’Ziyah Harris was last sighted alighting from a bus in Detroit in January.
Her disappearance prompted extensive searches across Southeast Michigan by law enforcement.
Photo of Na’Ziyah Harris on the day of her disappearance.
Although Harris’s remains were not recovered, Butts was charged with murder and rape in September.
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy indicated that Butts, acquainted with Harris’s family, allegedly groomed her from 2022 onwards. Harris was pregnant at the time of her demise, with Butts purportedly the unborn child’s father.
Timeline of Na’Ziyah Harris’s Disappearance
- Na’Ziyah boards the school bus.
- She is dressed in specific attire and captured on bus surveillance.
- Na’Ziyah communicates via a school-issued tablet.
- She sends a message indicating a rendezvous with Butts.
- They travel to an auto repair shop in Detroit.
- Na’Ziyah is last seen, never to be observed again.
Charges Against Jarvis Butts
Butts, a resident of Highland Park, faces charges of first-degree premeditated murder, second-degree criminal sexual conduct, and child sexually abusive material concerning Harris’s alleged murder.
Additional Charges Against Butts
Apart from the Harris case, Worthy also charged Butts with sexually abusing two other minors. One victim was allegedly abused between April 2012 and April 14, while another victim was assaulted from July 2015 to July 2017.
Butts faces counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct and first-degree criminal sexual conduct for those incidents.
He was previously incarcerated for a child sexual assault in 2004.
Worthy stated that Butts was charged for these cases in November last year, and bound over for trial.
Source: Information derived from the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office and court testimony.