INGLEWOOD, Calif. – An ex-aide to Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts Jr. testified on Jan. 12 that she was subjected to physical abuse while working in City Hall.
Melanie McDade testified under oath for hours about the abuse she suffered at the hands of the mayor, which has been alleged by one of his ex-wives who also worked for the Inglewood Police Department.
The proceedings were attended by members of the public who shared parts of her testimony on social media.
“Melanie McDade testified to being physically abused at least 10 times, at City Hall. She also testified to sleeping with Butts in his office,” said Fredrisha Dixon. “She said once he burst into her office in rage and pushed her to the wall in her chair. Another time she said he grabbed her wrist and told her he would f**k her up. She also talked about how he would blow up on her and call her out of her name and [City Manager] Artie Fields and other employees witnessed and said nothing.”
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In Butts’ 178-page declaration opposing McDade’s request for a permanent restraining order against him, his attorneys allude to Butts and McDade being married.
“In re: the Marriage of Melanie McDade v James Butts…” appears to indicate they are in fact married considering the statement is made on a legal filing and submitted to the Court. It also appears to be a subtle response to why he was engaged in the behavior she is alleging.
“Now he alludes to marriage? Hmmm, her husband bad mouths her, fires her and she has not filed for divorce?” opined a commenter.
Butts and McDade are due back in court on Jan. 20 where Butts is expected to take the stand and testify about the allegations being lobbed at him.
Butts vehemently denies her request for a restraining order. He has submitted social media posts and articles from this blog as “proof” she is “leaking” information about the nearly dozen times members of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s department and process servers attempted to serve him prior to last November’s election.
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“This is a PR stunt,” wrote Butts.
Residents believe he is abusing his power over employees, who he ie entangling in her personal life while they’re on the clock.
“Is the mayor suffering from a medical condition that prevents him from driving himself?”
McDade also testified she lived with the mayor between 2013-2019 in the Renaissance gated community.
This author previously reported on the two living together and a former member of the Compton school board convalescing at the home after surgery because she was loosely related to Butts.
The mayor denied they lived together despite the water bill account being in his name.
Other staff in City Hall were kept on the payroll when they testified during an internal investigation about what they knew about the going on’s on the 9th floor which eerily appeared to favor McDade’s account of what transpired.
Residents are also under the impression the members of the council and Fields are aiding and abetting in his behavior every week when they heap continued praise for his leadership in exchange for their easy paychecks and “prestige” that comes with being on the council.
Councilman George Dotson is facing a runoff election on March 7 and I doubt he wants the mayor knocking on doors to corral the voters who just so happen to read your articles on social media and decide to question him about Melanie McDade.
The regular city council meeting scheduled for Jan. 17 has been canceled where Butts was more than likely to face the public calling for his resignation.
2 Comments
????? Why pray tell, does this abusive, inconsiderate, rude, self indulgent, ego tripping, bully think that being married to a woman gives him the right to treat her (or any of his wives/ assorted other women) poorly and think he is entitled to continue to have the opportunity to hurt her physically, emotionally, or financially at any time but somehow at his will because they may or not have been or are married?
A marriage certificate does NOT mean it is okay for either party mistreat the other !!!
Anyone who has watched council meetings can easily recall the rude, insulting manor of James Butts especially directed against woman who do not admire or act as they are mindless devotees ala Charles Manson or Jim Jones followers.
The truly tragic part of this is that there are men so devoted to position, prestige, or payroll checks that they have become much like the frat boys who watch a rape but want to be “accepted” by the rapist so they watch and keep silent rather than stand up for that which is right..
Yes even those who have options of preserving truth and obey the law have chosen to destroy video/audio recordings of James Butts telling a member of the public to “go choke herself”- with the consent and awareness of the Council members including sworn police officer Alex Padilla. That recording tampering, in just another instance where destruction important documents and records – ie abuse of force reports. This destruction has been done in an effort to make it appear as if the incidents never occurred …is there a possibility that our tax paid attorney says there is no proof because she has been told all known proof has been sanitized or destroyed ?
Let’s not forget this is the same elected and his fellow elected who voted to destroy records of police abuse….shouldn’t that action alone tell us where their mindset is? Do we need a reminder of how important actual recordings being preserved and made public are? Can we name one or more that should never fade for our collective memory? Consider how different the narrative of George Floyd’s last minutes alive might be if not for the courage and wisdom of immediate release of the recording of that “ incident”/event/ending of life!
Perhaps we should wake up and smell the coffee and remind ourselves that when the BUTTEAM screams of the wonderfulness of their idol it does not make the words, or the actions of James Butts noble, righteous, honest, moral, or respectable.
Think back about the many lies this man has publicly told and his action on a microphone when he knows he is being recorded …does anyone believe when the cameras are off he magically becomes a gentleman?
Many may not be fans of McDade and find if sick that we the tax payers may pay her for the harassment suit she has filed but few who have watched the lies at council meetings can honestly say they believe that when James Butts speaks his words reflect “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth”. He is quoted as telling a reporter as police chief he was second to God.!!
The real victims in all of this are the citizens of Inglewood and Mrs. Butts.