ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Minnesota Court of Appeals is reversing the conviction of a Maple Grove woman found guilty of the March 2020 fatal shooting of her boyfriend.
Stephanie Clark, 32, received a 25-year sentence for the second-degree murder of 30-year-old Don Juan Butler.
The court’s opinion said the Hennepin County Court’s jury instructions, “materially misstated the law of self-defense by defining ‘imminent’ as ‘immediately’ and by failing to tailor the instruction to the unique circumstances of the case.”
Clark claimed that Butler punched her, held a gun to her head, and threatened to kill her before she shot him multiple times.
The case is expected to be re-tried by the lower court.
