Growing Up in Racine
For many inner city kids, the life of drugs seems like the only option. The same was true for a young kid in Racine, Wisconsin named Caron Butler. In Racine, there are no positive role models. Anyone that made it out of the hood never came back. Without any role models to look up to, young black teens like Caron were destined for a life of crime. Seeing drug dealing as his only way out, Caron joined the trade at the age of 12. He could be found serving addicts at the park on his block all night and into the morning. Selling crack cocaine all night and carrying a gun is no way for a 12 year old to live, but to Caron, there was n other way.
How Everything Changed
Before his 15th birthday, Caron had been arrested 15 separate times for minor offenses. He was living the type of life that more often than not ends in either a life in prison or an early death. When Caron was 15, he was arrested for having cocaine and a firearm in his locker at school. Due to the severity of the offense and long rap sheet that he had accumulated, he was sentenced to one year in a maximum security detention center for juveniles. “It was survival, people were getting raped. You’ve got murderers in there.” Butler said when asked about his time there. Regardless of the hardened criminals in the facility, Caron was not one to back down. He was sent to solitary confinement for two weeks after a fight with a fellow inmate. It was during this two week period that he decided that it was time to change his life. Caron rekindled his passion for basketball and decided to leave his life of crime in the past. When he was released from jail, Caron got a job at a local Burger King and began making money legally for the first time in his life.
Caron’s Second Chance
Caron Butler was working member of society, providing for him and his family. A little over a year and a half after Caron had turned his life around, Officer Rick Geller had received word that there were drugs were being sold out of Butler’s home. Upon further investigation, Officer Geller received enough information to draft a search warrant for the residence. On January, 22nd 1998, a SWAT team arrived at the house and busted in while a confused Caron Butler was in bed. Butler put on a shirt and was handcuffed as they searched his home. In the garage, authorities found 15.3 grams of crack cocaine, a charge that carries a 10-15 year sentence. Officer Geller, the arresting officer, could tell just by looking at his fact that Caron had nothing to do with it. He called his immediate supervisor and was told that they had more than enough to convict him. Geller responded by telling him his supervisor that he truly believes that it wasn’t Butler’s cocaine and that charging him would be a huge mistake. Much to Butler’s surprise, when Geller returned to the room that Butler was sitting handcuffed in, he walked over to him and took the handcuffs off of him.
Caron The Basketball Player
Butler was determined to capitalize on his second chance and he did exactly that. In 1999, Caron Butler was ranked as the 60th best recruit in a class filled with future NBA standouts. He accepted a scholarship offer from Jim Calhoun and the Uconn Huskies. Butler led the team in both scoring and rebounding as a freshman, averaging 15.6 points per game and 7.6 rebounds per game. As a sophomore, Butler was even better. He averaged 20.3 points per game and 7.5 rebounds per game while leading Uconn to a regular season Big East title, Big East conference championship, and an Elite Eight birth, all while bringing home co-Big East player of the year honors alongside Pittsburgh’s Brandin Knight. After his sophomore year, Butler declared for the NBA Draft and was selected 10th overall by the Miami Heat. Caron Butler had a very impressive NBA career. He retired as an NBA champion, two time all star, NBA all rookie first team member, and averaged 14.1 points per game and 5.0 rebounds per game over a 14 year career.
Basketball Is Not Where The Story Ends
Caron Butler has chosen to use his platform to make a difference in his hometown of Racine, Wisconsin where there aren’t positive role models. In 2012, Caron donated $200,000 to local charities in his hometown. He was asked about his generous donation and he responded by saying, “I want to continue to be a pillar in this community.” He had come a long way from the 12 year old drug dealer who couldn’t stay out of handcuffs. Caron Butler had one man to thank for giving him the opportunity to make it this far, Rick Geller, the man he refers to as his “guardian angel.” Caron has had plenty of chances to thank Geller as they are now very close friends and even filmed a documentary together. One decision made by a Racine, Wisconsin police officer not only saved a man’s life, but gave a countless number of children the ability to dream and to realize that there are other ways out.
Timothy Martin Sports Journalism 