Caitlin Clark Stalker Gets 2.5 Years

UPDATE Jul 28, 2025 6:22 PM CDT

A Texas man pleaded guilty to stalking and harassing Caitlin Clark on Monday and was sentenced to 2.5 years behind bars. Michael Lewis, 55, has been in custody since his arrest in Indianapolis in January. Prosecutors said he sent the WNBA star hundreds of messages, some of them threatening or sexually explicit. TMZ reports that Clark approved the plea deal. Lewis was also ordered not to contact Clark. The judge recommended Lewis seek mental health treatment, WTHR reports. "You can't help yourself until you get help," she told him. Prosecutor Ryan Mears said the agreement ensures Lewis, who told police he was in an "imaginary relationship" with the 22-year-old, is "held accountable for his threatening actions, the fear he instilled, and the disruption he caused."

Jan 15, 2025 9:21 AM CST

A Texas man accused of stalking WNBA star Caitlin Clark didn't come quietly for his Indianapolis court appearance this week, though he came enthusiastically. "Guilty as charged!" 55-year-old Michael Lewis proclaimed "as soon as he sat down" Tuesday in Marion County Superior Court to face his felony charge, per the AP. WISH reports that Lewis seemed "very erratic" during the courtroom proceedings, even apparently laughing. Lewis also said that he'd not been taking his medication while behind bars or living in his car. At one point, Judge Angela Davis warned him to "remain silent" and that he should only talk to his lawyer.

According to a probable cause affidavit, Lewis is believed to have started sending messages to the 22-year-old Indiana Fever guard on X starting in mid-December and continuing through the new year. WISH notes it counted more than 800 posts—some of them sexually explicit and/or threatening—targeting Clark on Lewis' account over about a month, coming out to an average of 30 posts a day. When local police discovered that Lewis had come to Indianapolis from Texas, he told them he was just joking, and that he'd fantasized about being in a relationship with Clark. When Lewis kept tweeting about her even after police had met with him, they swooped in for an arrest.

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The court filed a not guilty plea on Lewis' behalf. His bond was set at $50,000, though it looks like Lewis isn't too keen on being freed. "I don't want bond, bail, or whatever," he told Davis, per FOX59. "I'm here. I'm staying here." If Lewis happens to change his mind and the money is posted, he'll have to stay in Indiana and wear an ankle bracelet. He's also ordered to steer clear of the two arenas where the Fever play when they're at home. Lewis' pretrial hearing is set for March 31. Lewis could see up to six years behind bars and a $10,000 fine if convicted, per ESPN.