Michigan State Police, Michigan
End of Watch: Monday, September 9, 2013
Age: 43
Tour of Duty: 14 years
Badge Number: 1190
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: September 9, 2013
Weapon Used: Gun; Unknown type
Suspect Info: Committed suicide
Trooper Paul Butterfield was shot and killed while making a traffic stop on Custer Road, near Townline Road, in Mason County, at approximately 6:20 pm.
A few minutes after radioing in the stop, a citizen called 911 to report a trooper had been shot. Responding units located Trooper Butterfield on the ground suffering from a gunshot wound to the head. He was flown to Munson Medical Center where he succumbed to his wounds while in surgery.
Using a vehicle description provided by Trooper Butterfield as he stopped the vehicle, investigators were able to identify a suspect and located him, along with a female accomplice, at a convenience store in a neighboring county approximately two hours later. Officers exchanged gunfire with him as they made contact, wounding the male subject before taking them both into custody.
The subject who shot Trooper Butterfield was convicted of first-degree murder in February 2014 and faced a sentence of life without parole. After sentencing, he was transferred to the Michigan Department of Corrections, where he attempted suicide by hanging himself with his bed sheets. He was found unresponsive in his cell and transferred to a local hospital, where he was declared brain dead and died three days later. The female accomplice was convicted of accessory after the fact and sentenced to two to five years.
Trooper Butterfield was a U.S. Army veteran and had served with the Michigan State Police for 14 years. He is survived by his fiancee, father, and stepmother.