Man who killed Sinzae Reed changes plea as jury deliberates

As a Franklin County jury deliberated his fate, a man who fatally shot a teenager pleaded guilty to two weapons-related charges.

The jury charged with determining whether Krieg Butler, 38, was guilty of improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle and tampering with evidence had struggled to reach a verdict after beginning its deliberations Thursday after- noon.

Butler has not been charged with any crimes directly related to the October 12, 2022 shooting death of 13-year-old Sinzae Reed.

County Common Pleas Judge Andy Miller implored the jury Friday morning to continue deliberating in hopes of reaching a unanimous verdict after the jury indicated it was unable to reach a unanimous verdict. get there.

At approximately 12:20 p.m. Friday, Butler appeared before Miller and indicated he would plead guilty to both charges.

Zeyen and McCord jointly recommended to Miller that Butler serve three years of probation and a six-month local jail term. Butler will be officially sentenced on December 2.

As part of his plea deal, Butler agreed to testify if anyone else was ever charged in connection with Reed’s death.

The shooting of Reed, a Black teenager, by Butler, a white man, sparked national attention from activists and protests as the killing came months after the May 2022 killing of George Floyd Jr..

Butler was initially charged with murder in the shooting, but that charge was dismissed after Butler told detectives he returned fire in self-defense after Reed shot him first. Additional investigation and collected evidence supported Butler’s statements, Assistant Franklin County Prosecutor David Zeyen told the jury.

Reed had a gun on him and someone else removed it from the 13-year-old’s body before police arrived at the scene, Zeyen said.

Zeyen also said security cameras at the Wedgewood Village Apartments complex, which usually would have captured the shooting, were moved to another part of the complex because of concerns about illegal dumping.

Butler has a prior conviction for theft that prohibited him from having a loaded gun in his vehicle, Zeyen told the jury. After the shooting, Butler fled the scene and gave the gun to a relative. Zeyen said Butler initially lied to police about owning the gun or shooting Reed, but then helped detectives recover the firearm.

Butler’s attorney, Touré McCord, told the jury that Butler had no choice in being armed because he had been repeatedly threatened by a neighbor. The same day Butler shot Reed, that neighbor had made threatening comments to Butler, McCord said.

McCord also reminded the jury several times that the trial and the charges against Butler were not about Reed or his death.

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