Child abuser found guilty

A 40-year-old man convicted of beating and sexually abusing a female relative for nearly a decade since she was 7 years old faces between 139 years to life in prison when he is scheduled to be sentenced next month, prosecutors said Thursday.

Robert Butterfield, 40, was found guilty late Wednesday of forcible lewd acts on a child, corporal injury to a child, child abuse, criminal threats and other charges.

Butterfield, whom the Orange County District Attorney’s office said was often homeless and moved between homes and hotels around Orange County, was accused of physically and sexually assaulting a young female relative when she was between 7 and 16 years old. He also assaulted the victim’s sister, and beat and abused two of her younger brothers, prosecutors said.

Butterfield’s arrest on July 24, 2005, came thanks to one observant Costa Mesa police officer and the sheer chance of him being at the right place at the right time, prosecutors said.

Butterfield was arrested at the Ana Mesa Motel in Costa Mesa after the officer, driving by on Harbor Boulevard, saw him through the second-story window in a struggle with a young female relative. Officers said the 6-foot, 5-inch, 275-pound Butterfield put the girl in a chokehold and threatened her with a knife.

Through the trial, prosecutor Tony Ferrentino painted a picture of a family terrorized by Butterfield. Prosecutors proved Butterfield physically and sexually abused the older female relative.

At times, he would punch her in the back of the head and hit her in places that would be covered by clothes so people would not ask questions, prosecutors said. The girl still has a scar on her shoulder from when Butterfield stabbed her.

When she was 14, Butterfield punched her in the nose and eye because she was late for dinner.

The girl’s younger sister was also sexually assaulted when she was between 11 and 12.

“It was just a nightmare for these two young women to be involved in the situation,” Ferrentino said. “Every day or every week, somebody was getting beaten or molested.”

Butterfield also beat the girls’ younger brothers, ages 4 and 5, and their mother.

“Since the earliest age the victims remember, they were physically threatened and beaten by [Butterfield],” Ferrentino said.

Butterfield’s attorney did not immediately return phone calls for comment.

Ferrentino said the defense did not present any witnesses during the trial.

They instead tried to debunk the accusations by pointing to the fact the relatives denied any abuse to authorities more than once.

That, Ferrentino said, was because Butterfield threatened to kill them.

Butterfield is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 5 at the Central Justice Center in Santa Ana.

MICHAEL MILLER may be reached at (714) 966-4617 or at michael.miller@latimes.com. JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at joseph.serna@latimes.com.