A rape suspect who was arrested in Ocean Beach after two lesbians chased him after hearing a victim screaming has pleaded guilty to two sexual assaults and faces a prison term of 30 years to life.
Richard Christopher Butts, 26, and his attorney agreed to accept the long prison term and Butts will be sentenced April 17, according to court records.
“We all feel this is a fair resolution of the case,” said Deputy District Attorney Wendy Patrick.
Patrick said if Butts had been convicted of all counts at trial; he would be facing 50 years to life in prison. He pleaded guilty to rape and unlawful oral copulation with both victims and admitted he kidnapped them when he moved the victims a substantial distance.
The guilty pleas were entered before San Diego Superior Court Judge Timothy Walsh March 3. Butts remains in jail without bail.
The two lesbians were at the right place at the right time when they heard the victim screaming March 24, 2013. The victim had been dragged 80 feet from a sidewalk on Long Branch Avenue around 10:15 p.m. to a dark area beside a house which was next door to where the women were dog sitting.
They ran outside and chased Butts a short distance until police told them by phone to stop. He was arrested at Robb Field. One of them identified Butts in court as the attacker. They posted their account of what happened on Facebook. They urged women to avoid walking alone at night.
Police evidence technicians discovered a DNA match from the March 24 incident to an unsolved rape on Muir Avenue Aug. 25, 2012. He was then charged with another rape and kidnapping and later ordered to stand trial in both attacks.
A brain scan was performed in a hospital on Butts after his attorney requested it be conducted. Attorney Yahairah Aristy wrote that Butts has “very limited memory of the events alleged in this case” and she wanted an MRI scan “to see if there are any abnormalities” in his brain.
