A judge dismissed the case against Jesse Butler on Monday, one day before his 19th birthday, after he completed a rehabilitation plan at home. Butler had pleaded no contest and received youthful offender status before the dismissal ended the remaining state case.
The ruling closes the criminal case without jail time. Butler's attorney said at Monday hearing he plans to file a motion to have Butler's record expunged, while the victim's parents said they were misled about how the case would be resolved.
Monday hearing in Oklahoma
Butler was arrested in March 2025 after two girls he had previously dated accused him of sexual and physical abuse. Prosecutors charged him with 10 felony counts and one misdemeanor count, then later amended the charges to include a protective-order violation.
The felony counts included attempted first-degree rape, rape by instrumentation, sexual battery, forcible oral sodomy and domestic assault and battery by strangulation. The misdemeanor count was domestic assault and battery.
Rachel Bussett said in a phone call to NBC News: "My clients always understood that there would be a guilty plea and some sort of inpatient-type treatment required, not that it was going to be no contest and home confinement."
K.S. and L.S.
The victims, identified in court documents as K.S. and L.S., said the abuse took place over several months in 2024. A school resource officer alerted police in Stillwater after the girls reported the abuse in September 2024.
L.S. said she dated Butler from January to March 2024 and that he frequently physically and sexually assaulted her during that time. She said he attempted to rape her in a vehicle on Feb. 2, 2024, then again at his home after driving there.
L.S. also said Butler warned her that if she went to police, they would both be in trouble. She said he strangled her to the point of unconsciousness on Feb. 29, 2024.
Derek Chance plans expungement
Derek Chance said at Monday hearing, "This was just a really, really difficult case," and that Butler "maintained our innocence and explained that we entered a plea to essentially engage in risk management in the case."
The dismissal leaves the family preparing a civil lawsuit against Butler and his family, while his lawyer moves toward expungement. The criminal case has ended, but the record fight and civil claims are the next step.
