Detroit man convicted of killing 13-year-old Na’Ziyah Harris dies in prison after sentencing

Jarvis Butts was sentenced to 35-60 years in prison two weeks ago for the murder of Na’Ziyah and the sexual assault of five other girls.

Jarvis Butts, the 43-year-old man who was convicted of killing 13-year-old Na’Ziyah Harris and sexually assaulting multiple other girls, has died in prison. Authorities say that Butts may have taken his own life just two weeks after he received his sentencing, and they are investigating his death as a suicide.

“MDOC staff provided life-saving measures which were unsuccessful. The Michigan State Police have been called to the facility to investigate; the death is currently being reported as a suicide,” Detroit officials said in a statement, per Fox 2 Detroit.

Butts was being held at the Charles E. Egeler Reception and Guidance Center, a facility where prisoners are placed after they are convicted and before they are sent off to another state prison, when he was found dead, according to reporting from the Detroit Free Press.

Butts was given 35 years for killing Na’Ziyah and an additional 10-15 years for the sexual assault of five other girls between the ages of four and 13 years old. The local outlet reported that he would not have been eligible for parole until he served the 35 years. In September, he was also arraigned on a separate sex crime involving an eight-year-old female relative.

Na’Ziyah was only 13 years old when she was reported missing in 2024 after her grandmother recalled her not coming home from school on Jan. 9. In a deeply disturbing case, which a judge called “a prime example” of how much more work needs to be done when it comes to protecting children, “especially Black girls,” trial evidence showed texts that Butts had met up with Na’Ziyah the day she disappeared, and that she was also pregnant. Butts, who had allegedly been grooming Na’Ziyah since 2022, was the on-and-off boyfriend of her aunt.

Prosecutors found searches in Butts’ phone for abortions, abortion pills, and drinking red antifreeze before Na’Ziyah died. Butts pleaded guilty in February and agreed to share the location of Na’Ziyah’s body as part of his plea.