Maple Grove Woman Convicted of Murdering Boyfriend with Child Present
A Maple Grove woman will be sentenced next month for fatally shooting her boyfriend.
Stephanie Clark, 31, was found guilty of intentional second-degree murder. A jury convicted Clark on Thursday after more than four hours of deliberations.
The fatal shooting happened in March of last year in a Maple Grove apartment. According to the criminal complaint, Clark told police that she shot her boyfriend after the couple got into a fight and he punched her in the stomach and back.
The boyfriend, identified as Don’Juan Butler, 30, of Maple Grove, died of multiple gunshot wounds.
The complaint said officers met with a witness, who informed them that she heard loud bangs from an apartment nearby. Shortly after, she heard someone knocking on her door. Clark was outside with her 5-year-old son and told the witness, “He’s dead,” the complaint said.
During a search of the apartment, the complaint stated that officers found five guns. The officers also noted a half-eaten sandwich on a children’s plate at the kitchen table. Investigators concluded the child had been present at the time of the shooting.
Clark is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 18. Prosecutors plan to ask for a sentence of more than 30 year in prison, the very top of state sentencing guidelines for the crime committed.
