Jarvis Butts, the Detroit man convicted of murdering missing 13-year-old Na’Ziyah Harris and the sexual assault of multiple young women, has died in prison, officials say.
A spokesperson with the Michigan Department of Corrections confirmed that Butts was pronounced dead Thursday morning at the Charles Egeler Reception and Guidance Center in Jackson, Michigan. Corrections staff attempted life-saving measures, but were unsuccessful, according to the MDOC.
Authorities say Butts’ death is being investigated as a suicide.
Butts was sentenced on March 12 to serve up to 60 years in prison on a second-degree murder charge involving the death of Na’Ziyah, along with five separate sexual assault charges.
The hearing in Wayne County Third Circuit Court included emotional statements from Na’Ziyah’s family and others.
Hathaway issued a sentence that included 35 to 60 years in prison on the murder charge, with credit for time served. He was also sentenced to 10 to 15 years in prison on the five criminal sexual conduct charges. All terms will be served concurrently, according to the previous plea agreement.
He also had agreed to “provide truthful statement regarding the body of Na’Ziyah Harris” as part of the plea. While he did not give that information during the open court hearing, Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said she was satisfied with the answer.
Na’Ziyah was last seen getting off a school bus on Jan. 9, 2024, in the area of Cornwall and Three Mile Drive in Detroit. Her body has never been found.
Butts pleaded guilty on Feb. 12 in an agreement that settled six separate cases.
Wayne County prosecutors had previously argued that Butts allegedly started exchanging sexually abusive texts with Harris as early as 2022.
A database with the U.S. Department of Justice shows that in 2024, the most recent year for which “deaths in custody” data is available, there were 132 deaths in Michigan prisons, of which six were attributed to suicide.
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