Maple Grove woman sentenced in boyfriend's shooting

Stephanie Clark received 25 1⁄2 years in prison.

The Minnesota Star Tribune
February 7, 2022 at 10:50PM
Stephanie Clark
Stephanie Clark (Hennepin County Sheriff's Office/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

A Maple Grove woman was sentenced Monday to 251⁄2 years in prison for fatally shooting her boyfriend in 2020.

Stephanie Clark, 31, was convicted in October in Hennepin County District Court of intentional second-degree murder for killing Don'Juan T. Butler, 30, on March 5, 2020.

Prosecutors requested a sentence of about 30½ years — the highest term recommended by state sentencing guidelines for someone with no criminal history, according to the Hennepin County Attorney's Office. The term given by Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill is the presumptive, midrange term recommended by the guidelines.

According to court documents: Police went to the 6200 block of Magda Drive in Maple Grove where a witness said she heard bangs in a nearby apartment. She said Clark then knocked on her door and announced, "He's dead."

Butler was found inside an apartment with several gunshot wounds. Clark, who was bruised on her back and left side, told police Butler had struck her during a fight and she shot him.

about the writer

Chao Xiong

Reporter

Chao Xiong was the Hennepin County Courts reporter for the Star Tribune. He previously covered Ramsey County courts, St. Paul police, the state of Minnesota and the city of Minneapolis.

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