The NJCU community is mourning the loss of yet another student  in less than a month.

The remains of Sarah Butler, 20, were found by search crews on the morning of Thursday, Dec. 1 (more than a week after she was reported missing), in an undisclosed area within the West Orange section of the Eagle Rock Reservation in Essex County. Her 2007 Dodge Caravan was located by first responders prior to the discovery of her body.

On Friday, Dec. 2, the Northern Regional Medical Examiner’s Office ruled Butler’s death a homicide. Authorities determined her body was placed in the reserve postmortem. Details on the exact cause of death have not been released.
 Butler, who was last seen on Tuesday, Nov. 22, was reported missing by family the following day. Her family spent Thanksgiving, and many days afterward, anxiously waiting for her return. Then came the dreadful, tragic news.

Butler was a freshman studying Media Arts. She was an avid dancer, honing in on her passion for dance for over 17 years; she was a member of the Premiere Dance Theatre in Montclair, where her family lived. She performed multiple times at the Apollo Theater with her school, and also performed on the NJCU campus on 9/11. Her last performance with the Premiere Dance Theatre was in June, before she moved into the West Campus Village for the fall semester. Butler also served as a lifeguard for the Montclair YMCA, and was a member of the Montclair High School Dance Company.

Shaina Jefferson, a sophomore Business Major and member of NJCU’s Fashion Organization (Fashion Org), shared that Butler participated in fashion shows as a model in the past. “She helped many people and [was] nothing but nice to everyone. She had a cheered spirit and a nice heart – no matter what.”

Fashion Org members said they were acquainted with Butler especially because of her makeup skills, and that she also took time to attend some of their events.

LaMia Brown, Butler’s best friend since sophomore year of high school, shared that they kept in contact with one another every day. “She was a beautiful person, inside and out…the funniest person I’ve ever met. She was extremely creative and passionate; just an all around amazing soul.”

People have also taken to social media to grieve Butler’s death, one of them being her former dance teacher, James Icon Grant, who posted to his Instagram account a collage of her selfies and group photos he had with her. His caption reads, “It’s so hard to write something about this Beautiful woman that I had the pleasure of knowing since the age of 6. She was a positive and bubbly person that love to laugh and love to Dance. WE LOVE YOU SARAH REST IN PARADISE.”

Friends of Butler’s family have set up a GoFundMe page.

Eagle Rock Reservation is a forest reserve and recreational park spanning 408 acres (approximately seven times larger than the 57-acre NJCU main campus) with mostly undeveloped land and extensive trails throughout.

Memorial Planned

Butler’s murder is the second slaying of an NJCU student, following the death of Syasia McBurroughs, who was murdered on Nov. 5 in Newark, another Essex County municipality.

A mass email sent from the Office of Residence Life and Housing to residents of West Campus Village, stated, “Our residential community has lost two beautiful young women; their absence has left us hurting as individuals and as a whole.”

The Fashion Org will be holding a candle lighting remembrance and balloon release on Monday, Dec. 5, at 4:30 p.m. in front of Hepburn Hall to raise awareness about the deaths of Sarah Butler, Syasia McBurroughs, and Christa Capers, each of whom were members or participants with the organization.

(On Oct. 20, Christa Capers, 20, was found unresponsive in her boyfriend’s Hillside apartment, and was pronounced dead at the scene. Her boyfriend, Emmanuel Dike, 22, who was found a week later at a hotel on routes 1&9 in Newark, was charged with first-degree murder; his bail was set at $1 million. Capers was earning an associates degree at Hudson County Community College but served as a model at past events administered by the NJCU Fashion Org.)

Active Investigation

Butler’s death is under active investigation by the Essex County Major Crimes Task Force. It is uncertain what happened to Butler between the time she was reported missing until her death. Chief Assistant Prosecutor Thomas Fennelly of the Essex County Homicide Unit said that they “are trying to piece the timeline together.” Because of this, it is vital that anyone with pertinent information in connection to her murder step forward.

Essex County Sheriff Armando Fontoura stated that a reward of up to $10,000 will be given to anyone with information leading to the arrest and conviction of Butler’s killer. Anyone with information is asked to call the prosecutor’s Tips Line at 1(877) TIPS-4EC.