Kriti Mehrotra
With Netflix’s ‘Trainwreck: P.I. Moms’ delving into the late 2000s/early 2010s tale that took the entire nation by storm, we get a documentary that is both baffling and gripping. It actually incorporates not only archival footage but also exclusive interviews with those close to the matter to really underscore how two men’s actions got a reality show canceled before it even began. Among them was Christopher “Chris” Buther, who arguably had the most to gain from it since it would have promoted his business to no extent without him even having to do any direct marketing.
Chris Butler Got Into the World of Private Investigation After a Career in Law Enforcement
A native of Antioch, California, Chris Butler was reportedly quite young when he first developed a passion for the legal and judicial world, inspiring him to have ambitions that translated to helping others. In fact, he seemingly began dreaming about becoming a police officer not long after, so that’s precisely the path he pursued upon graduating high school. He also liked the limelight, but that wasn’t his priority early on. However, for him, being on the force reportedly wasn’t all that he had expected it to be, driving him to part ways with it after a decade of loyal service.
Nevertheless, since Chris still wanted to help people and uncover the truth as much as he could, he went on to establish his own private investigations firm — Butler & Associates Private Investigations. It was around the mid-2000s when he did so, and he soon also began trying to get their work translated to television in the form of a reality show, since it was all the rage at the time. He even succeeded in doing so, thanks to his USP of primarily only hiring working moms because he deemed them the best at multitasking. Lifetime is the network that agreed to pick up the show as ‘P.I. Moms,’ but the business owner’s dreams were soon shattered owing to his own actions.
Chris Butler Was Arrested on Criminal Charges in 2011
It was in 2010 when Lifetime greenlit ‘P.I. Moms’ as a reality series, with the intention that Chris and a few of his top female agents would be the main cast members. However, the owner-operator himself was soon removed as a lead owing to his rather quiet and reserved nature, only for things to then blow up in a way no one ever imagined. The show was still filming in early 2011 when it came to light that Chris was also engaging in illegal activities, alongside then-Central Contra Costa County’s Narcotics Enforcement Team (CENT) Commander Norman Wielsch. They were arrested on February 16, 2011.
The two men were accused of reselling police-confiscated crystal meth, anabolic steroids, and marijuana for a profit – these were all stolen, and Chris reportedly had no problem distributing them. Thus, he was indicted on 28 felony counts, including embezzlement, second-degree burglary, and conspiracy, as well as several federal drug-related charges, driving his bail to be set at $840,000. After all, officials also discovered that he had been renting an office space in Pleasant Hill, California, under the guise of it being a massage parlor when it was actually a brothel.
Chris eventually confessed, and during his interrogation, he admitted that he had started committing crimes a few years ago after going broke while trying to get ‘P.I. Moms’ picked up as a reality show. As if that’s not enough, he conceded that he had placed over 100 illegal eavesdropping devices in unsuspecting cars since the early 2000s, upon being paid by attorneys and their clients to do so. Furthermore, he admitted to setting up the estranged spouses of his clients for drunken-driving arrests, which became an ordeal better known as Dirty DUIs. Yet, in the end, on February 8, 2012, the DA’s Office dropped all state charges against him, so he only had to face court for the federal ones.
Chris Butler is Now a Free Man Leading a Quiet Life
Chris was scheduled to stand trial for the federal charges against him later in 2012, but in May, he decided to enter into a plea deal. He pleaded guilty to 7 counts covering marijuana and meth distribution, theft, robbery, extortion, conspiracy, and illegal wiretapping. So a few months later, in September, considering the seriousness of his crimes, he was sentenced to eight years in prison and ordered to pay a $20,000 fine. During his sentencing, he said while holding back tears that he wants to “apologize to the community for the anxiety, fear, and suffering I have caused others. I want to apologize to the law enforcement community for the betrayal and embarrassment I inflicted upon it. I want to apologize to my family and friends who supported me through all of this.”
From what we can tell, since Chris was arrested in early 2011 and remained detained until his conviction, his sentence concluded on May 18, 2018, so that’s when he was released for good. Since then, though, the now 64-year-old prefers to lead a quiet life well away from the limelight. Hence, all we know is that he likely still resides around California, where loved ones and family members surround him at every step of the way. He also seemingly hasn’t tried returning to the spotlight or taking up any job in the law enforcement industry since, indicating his priorities are now only his family.
Read More: Denise Antoon: Where is the Ex-PI Mom Now?
