Preliminary exam continues in case alleging homicide of 13-year-old Niziah Harris; family and school staff testify

Judge Aaliyah Sabri presiding at the 36th District Court continued the preliminary examination in State of Michigan v. Jarvis Butts, case no. 2459617, after family members and a JD Clark Preparatory Academy staff member testified about the last known whereabouts and routine of 13-year-old Niziah ("Tuzaya") Harris.

The hearing matters: why the court is taking more testimony and what witnesses told the court. The prosecution called relatives who said Niziah was dropped at school on Jan. 9, 2024, did not arrive home at her usual time and was later reported missing; a substitute teacher described in-class behavior the morning she was last seen. The court admitted an attendance sheet as People’s Exhibit 31 and signaled the preliminary exam would continue at a later date.

At the outset, Judge Aaliyah Sabri told the courtroom: “If there's anyone in the courtroom who may testify or as a witness on this case ... you must exit the courtroom now,” a direction underscoring live-stream and witness-exclusion rules.

Prosecutors identified the case as a continuation of a preliminary examination that began Nov. 1, 2024, and said the file includes notices under Michigan’s habitual-offender framework that could affect sentencing if the case is bound over. Family witnesses described the child’s typical morning routine and the day she disappeared. Nick Harris and Shannon Harris, family members called by the people, testified that Niziah normally was dropped at JD Clark Preparatory Academy around 7:30 a.m. and would return home in the midafternoon, but did not come home on Jan. 9. Shannon Harris said she and other family members searched locally and made copies of missing-person flyers the following day.

Marilyn Lee, a substitute teacher at JD Clark who said she has worked at the school for roughly 25 years in various roles, testified she saw the child on Jan. 9 and that the student said, “Miss Lee, I need to go see the counselor,” and otherwise behaved in a way Lee found “very unusual” that morning. Lee said she checked attendance records after the disappearance; the court admitted the attendance form showing the student marked present on Jan. 9 but indicated she was not present the following day.

The defense objected at points to hearsay and to the timing or scope of some evidence, and the prosecutor offered certified records and text-message exhibits for consideration. The court heard a people’s motion to admit records under the Michigan Rules of Evidence; the prosecutor cited business-record exception authority for text-message collections and other digital records. The court admitted the attendance document (People’s Exhibit 31) after no objection was raised to that exhibit’s foundation.

Witnesses also testified about social-media access and devices: family members said Niziah had a tablet purchased about December 2022, used Wi-Fi access on a phone in the household, and that her bus stop was about a five-minute walk from the family home. Family members described varying contact patterns with the defendant and provided background on household composition during January 2024.

No final legal ruling on charges or bindover occurred at the session. The court stated the matter is continued for further testimony and proceedings; the exact continuation date and additional evidentiary rulings will be set by the court.

The hearing record includes multiple people’s exhibits that the prosecutor sought to admit for the preliminary-exam record; the court specified which exhibits were admitted on the record and which remain pending evaluation. The case remains in the preliminary-exam stage, and the continuation is expected to include further witness testimony and resolution of outstanding evidentiary objections.

All parties were instructed about witness-exclusion rules and live-streaming limitations. The court noted that live-stream viewers who may be potential witnesses must exit the public stream so testimony is not reviewed by witnesses before trial. No sentencing, bindover, or plea disposition occurred during this hearing.

Looking ahead: the preliminary exam will resume with additional witness testimony and court rulings on pending exhibits; no final decision on whether the case will be bound over to the circuit court was made at this session.