College Football Player Arrested, Dismissed From Team, For Attacking Gay Couple He Saw Kissing
A
Marshall University football player was dismissed from the team this week after
he was caught on video assaulting a gay couple unprovoked, punching them in the
face and shouting homophobic slurs because they were kissing on a sidewalk.
On
April 5, 23-year-old Marshall running back Steward Butler observed the two male
victims showing affection while walking to their hotel after dinner near the
intersection of 5th Avenue and 9th Street in Huntington, West Virginia.
According to a police report, the two men were “embracing and kissing.”
Butler,
who was a passenger in a moving car with two other Marshall University football
players at the time, stopped the car and got out to punch and verbally assault
the couple, Zackery Johnson and Casey Williams, who were able to catch much of
the assault on video with their cell phones.
According
to investigators, the victims’ cell phone footage showing clear shots of the
car’s license plate were instrumental in leading to Butler’s arrest.
“If
it wasn’t for the video, it would have been his word against theirs and we
wouldn’t have had anything. But luckily, they videoed it and that’s why we’re
here today,” Huntington PD Detective Chris Sperry told WSAZ.
“He
was traveling in the vehicle, he saw this, saw these two individuals walking,
saw them give each other a kiss. He had the driver stop the car, he gets out,
confronts him and said some choice, some bad choice words,” said Sperry. “It’s
not a pleasant thing to watch.”
Investigators
are “looking into” Butler’s “self defense” claim suspiciously, since he exited a
moving car in order to assault the couple. For what it’s worth, they note that
Butler’s two friends who stayed in the car were “telling him to stop and
leave.”
Though
police believe the attack was a hate crime, there’s no legislation protecting
LGBTs from hate crimes in West Virginia. In light of the situation, the
Huntington PD is looking into bringing federal charges against Butler through
the FBI, which do provide protections from hate crimes for LGBTs.
Justice
was swift for Butler at Marshall University, where he was put on indefinite
suspension by Athletic Director Mike Hamrick immediately following the charges.
As more details of the case became public and the video was made available to
Marshall University officials, Hamrick dismissed Butler from the team
altogether.
In
a tweet posted Wednesday, Hamrick said:
Marshall
University officials say they will let justice run its course for Butler in
court, and that he’s not yet off the hook for possible expulsion.
If
convicted, Butler could face two years in prison or a $1,000 fine, along with a
new charge to add to his extensive criminal
record.
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