MASON COUNTY, Mich. – It has been four years ago today since Michigan State Police Trooper Paul Butterfield was shot and killed in the line of duty.
He was shot in the head by Eric Knysz during a traffic stop in Mason County on Sept. 9, 2013, just minutes after starting his shift.
It’s a story that touched people across the state and nation, with hundreds turning out for his funeral, including law enforcement from around the country.
His fiancée, Jennifer Sielski, has said that there isn’t a day or even an hour that goes by that she doesn’t think of him.
“Sometimes you’ll feel happy, other times you just get this crushing, overwhelming feeling of sadness. The grief has changed; it doesn’t go away it just shifts and it just looks different now, but it doesn’t go away,” she said.
Eric Knysz, 20, committed suicide in prison in 2014.
His wife, Sarah, who was pregnant at the time of the shooting, is currently serving time for being an accessory after the fact.
