FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — A former Fresno Unified elementary school returned to court for a critical evidentiary hearing on Friday, as multiple girls testified about alleged abuse.<\/p>\n
One of them cried immediately upon seeing the man in court, identifying him as Aaron Butler.<\/p>\n
“He’s wearing a blue,” she began to say before breaking down on the stand.<\/p>\n
Butler taught at Lane Elementary School in southeast Fresno. The alleged victims said he routinely asked girls in his class to sit on his lap when they were in second grade.<\/p>\n
“When he was at his desk, you said he placed his hands in your pants. Is that correct?” Prosecutor Brian Exline asked. “Yes,” the girl said.<\/p>\n
At times fighting through tears, the girl described the full assault and said she returned to sitting with her classmates, believing the behavior was normal.<\/p>\n
“Did you tell your parents what happened that day?” Exline asked. “No,” she said. “I think I thought it was normal.”<\/p>\n
Butler has pleaded not guilty to all allegations, which total 10 felonies. His defense attorney, Jeff Hammerschmidt, questioned how often the alleged behavior occurred.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors said the conduct lasted for years and involved at least five young girls. A second girl also testified on Friday.<\/p>\n
“I do remember just sitting on his lap a lot,” she said.<\/p>\n
The girl added that she sat on Butler’s lap at his desk nearly every day and that he touched her about once a week. She reported the alleged abuse after learning of Butler’s arrest in 2020.<\/p>\n
“I felt kind of hurt because it happened to me, and I didn’t say anything. I kind of let it happen to other people,” she said.<\/p>\n
A Fresno County judge later ruled that prosecutors have enough evidence to take the case to trial.<\/p>\n
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