Man Sentenced for Harassing Caitlin Clark
Michael Lewis, a 55-year-old man from Texas, has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison after pleading guilty to stalking WNBA star Caitlin Clark, a player for the Indiana Fever. Lewis reached an agreement with Marion County prosecutors, accepting a felony charge of stalking and a misdemeanor charge of harassment. He will be credited for the time he has spent at the Marion County Adult Detention Center since his arrest. In addition, Lewis was ordered to stay away from Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Hinkle Fieldhouse, and events of the Fever and the Indiana Pacers organization. He was also prohibited from having contact with Clark, 23, and will not have internet access during his sentence.The judge also recommended that Lewis, who claimed during Monday’s court proceedings that the end of the world was near, receive mental health treatment. “You can’t help yourself until you get help,” the judge told Lewis. Lewis was arrested on January 12th after authorities alleged he sent hundreds of “threats and sexually explicit messages” to Clark via X between December 12, 2024, and January 11, 2025. According to court documents, Lewis sent messages such as: “I’ve been driving around your house 3 times a day” and “I’m getting tickets. I’ll sit behind the bench.” Other messages were of a sexually violent nature. The FBI traced the IP addresses of Lewis’s messages to a hotel in downtown Indianapolis and the Indianapolis Public Library. The Indianapolis police then conducted a welfare check on Lewis, who told them that he was in “an imaginary relationship” with Clark and that he had come to Indianapolis on vacation. The messages to Clark continued after the initial police visit. Clark, the number 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA draft, has played in 13 games this season due to injuries and is currently out with a right groin strain. In December, a 40-year-old man from Oregon pleaded guilty to harassing Paige Bueckers and received a suspended sentence of one year and three years of probation.“This resolution ensures that the defendant is held accountable for their threatening actions, the fear they instilled, and the disruption they caused,” said Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears.
Ryan Mears, Marion County Prosecutor
