James Butler (boxer)

James Butler Jr. (born December 18, 1972 in Harlem, New York) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1996 to 2004. He got 25 fights: 20 wins, 12 wins by KO, and 5 losses. On November 29, 2001, Butler sucker punched Richard Grant after losing and served 4 months at Riker's Island. In 2004, Butler was arrested for the murder of Sam Kellerman and was sentenced to 29 years and four months in prison.

Biography

Butler started off his career by scoring 18 wins and only 1 loss in the super middleweight division. This led to a title fight against Sven Ottke who beat Butler by unanimous decision.

Butler's next bout earned him infamy on November 23, 2001 at the Roseland Ballroom in Manhattan, New York. The bout was a charity event to benefit surviving New York firemen and police officers of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York City and was televised live on ESPN2. Butler faced Richard "The Alien" Grant, a fighter who had decisioned him early in his career. After losing the rematch by unanimous decision, Butler had his gloves removed before the announcement of the winner, Grant then went to Butler's side of the ring for an expected exchange of congratulations. Instead, Butler sucker punched Grant, nailing a bare-handed right hook to his jaw. Grant suffered a temporarily dislocated jaw and a lacerated tongue that required 26 stitches.^[1] Butler was arrested and charged with 2nd degree assault. Butler was later convicted and served four months at Riker's Island detention facility.^[2]

Butler's last bout was a split-decision loss on August 10, 2004 to Omar Sheika.

Murder of Sam Kellerman and conviction

On October 12, 2004, writer Sam Kellerman, (brother of boxing analyst Max Kellerman), was killed at his apartment in Los Angeles. His body was not found until October 17. Butler was considered a suspect; he had been friends with Kellerman for over 10 years.

On October 20, Butler, accompanied by a lawyer, sought treatment for his alleged bipolar disorder.

Butler was arrested for the Kellerman murder and slaying on October 27. Two days later, he pleaded not guilty to murder and arson. He was held on $1.25 million bail. Prosecutors claimed that Butler, the only suspect in the case, repeatedly struck Kellerman in the head with a hammer then torched Kellerman's Hollywood, California apartment in an attempted cover-up.

On July 8, 2005, a Los Angeles judge ruled that there was sufficient evidence for Butler to stand trial on the charges of murder and arson.

On March 27, 2006, Butler pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and arson in the 2004 death of Kellerman. On April 5, Butler was sentenced to 29 years and four months in prison by Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor, according to Deputy Public Defender Jack Keenan.^[3]

The suspected motive for the murder was that Kellerman had asked Butler to move out of his apartment because he was ruining it. Butler, who was struggling to revive his career for boxing picked up a hammer and killed Kellerman and then torched his house.^[4]

Professional boxing record

No.	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round, time	Date	Location	Notes
25	Loss	20–5	Omar Sheika	SD	10	10 August 2004	Essex County College , Newark, New Jersey, U.S.
24	Win	20–4	Dan Sheehan	UD	6	4 June 2004	Promo West Pavilion, Columbus, Ohio, U.S.
23	Win	19–4	Reggie Strickland	UD	6	7 May 2004	Farm Bureau Building, Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
22	Loss	18–4	Thomas Reid	UD	8	27 February 2004	Key Skating Center, Bronx, New York, U.S.
21	Loss	18–3	Richard Grant	UD	10	29 November 2001	Roseland Ballroom, New York, New York, U.S.
20	Loss	18–2	Sven Ottke	UD	12	1 September 2001	Bördelandhalle, Magdeburg, Germany	For IBF super-middleweight title
19	Win	18–1	Jerry Williams	UD	8	24 March 2001	Bördelandhalle, Magdeburg, Germany
18	Win	17–1	Jose Spearman	TKO	6 (12), 0:59	29 September 2000	Station Casino, Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.	Retained USBA super middleweight title
17	Win	16–1	Arthur Allen	TKO	2 (12), 2:03	24 March 2000	Blue Horizon, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.	Retained USBA super middleweight title
16	Win	15–1	Bryant Brannon	KO	7 (12), 0:55	29 October 1999	Farm Bureau Building, Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.	For USBA super middleweight title
15	Win	14–1	Merqui Sosa	TKO	2 (10), 1:02	16 July 1999	Hampton Beach Casino, Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, U.S.
14	Win	13–1	Thomas James	TKO	2 (6)	24 June 1999	Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
13	Win	12–1	Jose Hiram Torres	TKO	7 (10)	15 May 1999	Leominster, Massachusetts, U.S.
12	Win	11–1	Calvin Moody	KO	1 (10)	22 April 1999	Virginia, U.S.
11	Win	10–1	Rufat Baku	UD	10	9 October 1998	Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, New York, U.S.
10	Win	9–1	Hector Rosario	TKO	6 (8)	11 September 1998	Yonkers Raceway, Yonkers, New York, U.S.
9	Win	8–1	Tim Dendy	UD	6	24 March 1998	Grand Casino, Tunica, Mississippi, U.S.
8	Win	7–1	Knowledge Bey	KO	3 (4)	24 January 1998	Elks Lodge, Queens, New York, U.S.
7	Win	6–1	Malcolm Brooks	PTS	6	10 October 1997	Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, New York, U.S.
6	Win	5–1	Louis March	PTS	4	19 September 1997	Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, New York, U.S.
5	Win	4–1	Robert Muhammad	KO	6 (6)	18 June 1997	Yonkers Raceway, Yonkers, New York, U.S.
4	Win	3–1	Gerald Holmes	KO	1 (4)	11 April 1997	Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, New York, U.S.
3	Loss	2–1	Richard Grant	PTS	4	31 January 1997	Yonkers Raceway, Yonkers, New York, U.S.
2	Win	2–0	Derrick Whitley	PTS	4	2 November 1996	Hartford, Connecticut, U.S.
1	Win	1–0	Eddie Johnson	TKO	1 (4)	18 October 1996	Bronx, New York, U.S.	Professional debut

References

External links

• Professional boxing record for James Butler from BoxRec
• James Butler Deserves Ban From Boxing
• Video of James Butler's sucker punch against Richard Grant