Former high school coach formally charged with rape

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - The East Baton Rouge District Attorney’s Office has formally charged a former high school coach who was arrested on rape charges earlier this year. Charges including sexual battery and third-degree rape were filed for Johnnie Butler. An arraignment date has been set for late November.

Butler was fired from his job at Istrouma High School and arrested in May. Police were first involved after a student reported inappropriate text messages and non-consensual sex with Butler.

According to the arrest warrant, Butler texted the student asking her to meet him in the school’s gymnasium. A camera captured the two entering a room in the gym, disappearing for several minutes, and then exiting the gym separately, the warrant states.

The student told police that Butler “pushed her into a closet” and had sex with her without permission, then after, told her he’d text her when she should leave the room so the two would not be seen together, according to the warrant.

Butler denied having sex with the student and said he could not recall sending her any inappropriate messages, the warrant states.

The formal charges returned in the form of a document called a “Bill of Information” means the district attorney chose to move forward with prosecuting the case.

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