Conviction Overturned, Woman Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter in Domestic Violence Case

Conviction Overturned, Woman Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter in Domestic Violence Case

MAPLE GROVE, Minn. — Stephanie Clark, 35, of Maple Grove, has pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in the 2020 fatal shooting of her boyfriend, Don’Juan “Duke” Butler — a resolution that follows the overturning of her 2021 murder conviction on appeal. The plea marks the culmination of a five-year legal process and significantly reduces the prison time she faces.

Clark was originally convicted of second-degree intentional murder and sentenced to 25 years in prison after prosecutors argued she fatally shot Butler multiple times in their Maple Grove apartment on March 5, 2020. Throughout her trial, Clark maintained she acted in self-defense, testifying that Butler had physically assaulted her, held a gun to her head, and threatened her life while her five-year-old son was present.

In March 2023, the Minnesota Court of Appeals reversed her conviction, finding that the trial judge had provided jurors with an incorrect definition of “imminent” danger under state self-defense law. The judge’s instruction that “imminent” meant “immediate,” the appellate court ruled, misrepresented the legal standard and could have improperly influenced the jury’s decision. “Given [Butler’s] violent actions against Clark, the jury could have found that Clark was in imminent danger of great bodily harm, even if such danger was not immediate,” the court wrote in its opinion.

Following the reversal, Clark was released from custody and remained under court supervision while the case was reconsidered. Rather than face a new trial, she reached a plea agreement last week in Hennepin County District Court, pleading guilty to first-degree manslaughter. Under the terms of the agreement, she is expected to receive a sentence between just over six years and eight and a half years, with a presumptive term slightly above seven years. Clark will serve two-thirds of her sentence in prison and the remaining portion on supervised release.

In a statement, the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office acknowledged the complex circumstances surrounding the case: “The facts of the case indicate that Ms. Clark suffered intimate partner violence at Mr. Butler’s hands. This resolution acknowledges both her role in causing his death and the context in which it occurred.”

Clark’s defense attorney, Eric Doolittle, called the outcome “fair, though bittersweet,” adding, “I 100 percent believe in my client’s innocence. She thought she did what she had to do to live. She acted out of fear — intense fear.”

The case has drawn attention from domestic violence advocacy groups and legal scholars nationwide, many of whom highlighted the broader implications for how self-defense laws are applied in domestic abuse situations.

Clark is scheduled to be sentenced on January 5, 2026, in Hennepin County District Court.

MinneapoliMedia