LONGVIEW — Daniel Armaugh Butts was sentenced Tuesday to 48 years and nine months for gunning down Rainier, Ore., Police Chief Ralph Painter eight years ago. He is expected to serve some of that time in a state hospital until determined fit for prison.
The sentencing hearing stretched into late Tuesday morning as family members finally got their chance to confront Butts.
“A huge piece of my heart is now and will forever be in heaven,” Amy Painter, the chief’s wife, told Butts in Columbia County Circuit Court in St. Helens. “No penalty is harsh enough.”
Several other family members also confronted Butts.
Butts, now 29, is expected to plead guilty to a murder charge and in exchange for a sentence of at least 41 years before he can be eligible for parole.
Police say Butts, formerly of Kalama, wrested Painter’s gun away and then shot the chief in the head during a scuffle at a car stereo store on Jan. 5, 2011.
A Columbia County grand jury indicted Butts on 24 charges, including nine counts of aggravated murder, attempted aggravated murder, robbery, burglary, theft and unauthorized use of a vehicle.
The plea would end years of delay in which Butts’ lawyers and prosecutors debated his competency to stand trial. The courts ordered him to be forcibly medicated for treatment of schizophrenia, and in July, Columbia County Circuit Court Judge Ted Grove found Butts was fit to stand trial.
Painter, 55, became Rainier’s only police officer to die in the line of duty. The 25-year veteran of the Rainier Police Department led the force for five years. His death devastated the small community and left his large family and many friends grief-stricken.
Painter’s mother, Kathy Painter, 83, told the Oregonian she is dismayed it has taken so long to resolve the case.
“It’s hard to get through, but we waited eight years so it’s about time,” she said. She and other family members are expected to address Butts during the sentencing.
