Trial Begins for Man Accused of Officer’s Killing

The attorney for a reputed gang member charged with killing a San Diego police officer in 1988 told jurors Monday that authorities have arrested the wrong man for the crime in which the defendant could be executed if convicted.

Stacy Butler, 27, of Southeast San Diego went on trial before Superior Court judge William H. Kennedy in the killing of Officer Jerry Hartless, 24, who was shot in the forehead on Jan. 9, 1988, and died three weeks later without regaining consciousness.

“I think the evidence will show that Stacy Butler is not flat-out guilty of shooting Officer Hartless,” said William Nimmo, Butler’s attorney, in opening remarks to the jury. “They have the wrong man.”

Nimmo said an officer with Hartless minutes before the shooting at Ozark and Manomet streets could not later identify Butler as the man Hartless ran after before he was shot.

Nimmo said Hartless thought he saw a man breaking into a car and chased one of them. He said Hartless was “a rookie police officer and very enthusiastic about being a police officer.”

“Sadly, it may have been his enthusiasm that got him killed,” the defense attorney said.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Keith Burt told jurors that Hartless was “a young, former Marine, a San Diego police officer, cut down before the prime of his life.”

Burt said Hartless was killed by Butler “while doing his job.” Special circumstances allegations state that Butler murdered a police officer in the performance of his duty.

The prosecutor said Butler told another police officer some months earlier that he would kill a cop.

“He made good on his promise by putting a bullet into the skull of Officer Hartless,” Burt said.

Officer Johan Schneider, Hartless’ partner, also attempted to chase the fleeing man, Burt said, but when Hartless dropped his radio, Schneider picked it up and went back to his patrol car, which had been left unlocked and running.

Moments later, Schneider heard one gunshot, Burt said.

Schneider got into his car and drove 1 1/2 blocks, until he found his partner, according to Burt.

“His worst fear was realized. He found his partner, lying face down with a bullet in his skull,” Burt said.

Meanwhile, Butler ran several more blocks and went to some friends’ house and asked one of them, Willie Godine, to get rid of two handguns, Burt said.

Later, officers arrested Butler in the house and found the two guns under a lemon tree in the back yard. Burt said lab tests on a .22-caliber revolver found under the tree showed that it was the murder weapon.

Nimmo raised questions about Godine’s testimony from the preliminary hearing, saying Godine “can’t keep his story straight” about the guns.

Butler remains in County Jail downtown with no bail.