Barry Butzow (FOX 9)
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (FOX 9) - Twin Cities racehorse owner Barry Butzow has pleaded guilty to charges related to the allegations of the drugging and sexual assault of a bartender hired to work a private party for him in 2024.
Guilty plea in sexual assault case
What we know:
The Hennepin County Attorney's Office tells FOX 9 that Butzow, 79, pleaded guilty to a count of fifth-degree criminal sexual conduct in the case. As part of the plea agreement, he will be required to register as a predatory offender.
Butzow is slated to receive a stayed jail sentence of 364 days. However, prosecutors will argue for a 90-day jail cap at the sentencing hearing. He will also serve two years on probation as part of the sentence.
What's next:
Butzow is scheduled to be sentenced in the case on June 30.
Dig deeper:
Butzow is a well-known figure in the Twin Cities horse racing community as an owner and breeder. He has horses at Canterbury Park and has had a horse that competed in the Kentucky Derby in 2022.
The allegations
The backstory:
According to the criminal complaint against Butzow, the victim was hired to work as a bartender for a May 2024 cocktail party at Butzow home in Eden Prairie.
Two days after the party, Butzow asked the victim to return to his home to help pack and cleanup. The victim agreed to come over after her shift at 7 p.m.
That night, the victim and Butzow were drinking wine and the victim said Butzow tried to kiss her several times. She told him to stop and pushed him away. She later told Butzow that she needed to leave, but Butzow told her that she shouldn't be driving. The victim told police that was the last thing she could remember before losing consciousness. She believed she was drugged.
The complaint states that when she woke up she was lying in bed with Butzow next to her, and he was assaulting her. The charges say she tried to leave but Butzow blocked her way and grabbed her, leading her back to bed. However, she was eventually able to get away, out of the house, and able to call her boyfriend for help.
Big picture view:
The victim's boyfriend took her to the hospital where staff obtained DNA from the incident. Tests later matched the DNA to Butzow.
Two days later, on May 22, she filed a report about the incident with Eden Prairie police. Speaking with police in June, Butzow admitted hiring the woman but denied ever sexually assaulting her.
Butzow was originally charged with third-degree criminal sexual conduct for the attack. Monday's plea came as Butzow was set to face trial in the case.