Butner, Fred

Biographical Note

Fred Raymond Butner was born in 1951 to parents Fred W. Butner, Jr. and Martha H. Butner of Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Butner attended Duke University in the 1970s for both his undergraduate education as well as law school.

Following graduation from Duke, Butner moved to Key West, Florida, where he remained for the rest of his life. In Key West, he served as an assistant state attorney first, and later moved into private practice, eventually owning his own practice, where he focused on personal injury and trial work. He served as president of the Monroe County Bar Association, as well as a member of the Florida Bar Board of Governors.

Butner was also active in community affairs and civil rights work. He was involved with many local and regional Democratic Party organizations, and in 1988, he was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention. He was devoted to defending the civil rights of the oppressed, and in 1991, he wrote a human rights ordinance which was later adopted by the Key West City Council.

Butner died at age 41 in Key West.

By Cadence Neenan

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