Baldwin County Commission Chairman Kendrick Bernard Butts, 59, was arrested on October 14 on a felony charge of terroristic threats and acts under the Georgia Family Violence Act after a domestic dispute at his home turned into an alleged death threat against his daughter. He was released on a $3,000 property bond following the arrest.
The Baldwin County Sheriff's Office was called to Butts' residence after an argument involving his 27-year-old daughter, who had been living at the home for roughly 30 days before the incident, according to The Union-Recorder. The paper reports deputies responded to the domestic dispute and that the daughter initially reported her father had made repeated threats against her life.
Deputies reviewed Ring home security camera footage provided by Butts's daughter and uploaded it to Evidence.com, capturing Butts telling his daughter “I'll kill you” during the argument, according to WSB-TV. The same footage reportedly caught Butts repeating the threat in a phone call with his brother. The daughter initially wished to press charges before changing her mind, and deputies ultimately relied on the video and witness statements to identify Butts as the primary aggressor in the incident.
Trespass Notice Followed the Argument
After the dispute, Butts asked law enforcement to issue a formal trespass notice barring his daughter from returning to his residence, the station's report states. Deputies hand-delivered the notice once she had gathered her personal belongings from the home, and she signed a statement acknowledging she understood its terms.
Georgia law treats the charge with notable weight. Under Georgia Code § 16-11-37, a terroristic threat that suggests the death of another person is elevated from a misdemeanor to a felony, carrying a punishment of one to five years in prison and fines up to $1,000, according to a Georgia criminal-defense law firm. Georgia law requires corroborating evidence, such as video or third-party testimony, to support a conviction on that charge.
Butts Remains in Office for Now
Despite the felony charge, Butts is not automatically suspended or removed from his seat. Under Georgia Code § 45-5-6, a local elected official charged with a felony keeps serving unless a grand jury hands up an indictment related to official duties. After receiving a certified copy of a qualifying indictment, the governor appoints a review commission to determine whether the charge adversely affects public administration, per The Georgia Virtue. The commission must make its recommendation within 14 days.
Butts represents District 2 on the five-member Baldwin County Board of Commissioners, where he previously served as vice chairman before taking over as board chairman for 2026, according to The Union-Recorder. Before entering local politics, he served four years in the United States Marine Corps and ran Butts Electrical Services, a commercial trade business in Milledgeville.
A Family Already in the Legal Spotlight
This is not the first time Butts' family has drawn attention from Georgia courts. In September 2025, his son, Jeremy Xavier Butts, pleaded guilty in Jones County Superior Court to voluntary manslaughter in connection with a May 2021 shooting, while his daughter, Cierra Simone Butts, pleaded guilty to hindering the apprehension of a criminal in the same case, as reported by The Jones County News. That case required a visiting senior judge after local circuit judges recused themselves.
The arrest also lands at a tense moment for Baldwin County governance. In September, county leaders proposed nearly doubling local property taxes, considering raising millage rates from 10 to 19 mills, to resolve a $15 million short-term debt owed to Century Bank, as Hoodline previously reported. Butts' arrest now adds a personal legal crisis to a board already facing scrutiny over its fiscal decisions.
Whether the Baldwin County District Attorney will present the felony charge to a grand jury remains an open question, as does whether fellow commissioners will push Butts to step down from the chairmanship while the case proceeds. WSB-TV reported it had requested comment from officials about Butts' status with the commission and was still awaiting a response.
