Crime & Safety
Ex-Salem Cop Will Argue Sex In Station Was Consensual
Opening arguments in the case against Brian Butler, who is married to Chief Mary Butler, are expected Wednesday morning.
SALEM, MA -- When Brian Butler's trial opens Wednesday morning, his attorneys will try to portray the former Salem Police patrol officer as someone who engaged in consensual sex with a young man who had been placed in protective custody on the morning of Halloween in 2016. Jury selection for the trial started Tuesday in the trial. Butler is being tried on charges of rape and indecent assault and battery.
According to the Salem News, which first reported this story, Butler's alleged victim was naked in a holding cell with only a blanket. He felt powerless to refuse the officer's advances. "What else could I do?" the victim told investigators. "I was in fear because he was a police officer." Butler is married to Salem Police Chief Mary Butler
For more on this story, see the Salem News. Subscribe to Salem Patch for more local news and real-time alerts.
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Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).
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