John Chiv: "Now it seems I should have alerted the authorities to his behavior. Mike really has become a danger to himself and those around him."

Apr 12, 2024

"Now it seems I should have alerted the authorities to his behavior. Mike really has become a danger to himself and those around him."

Early this morning, I received this message about Michael Black. I did a post on him on April 10.

With permission, I am sharing what was sent to me this morning and the person has asked to be anonymous "out of fear of reprisals from Mike." This first email refers to Michael Black recently arrested who was the defendant in the case with Russ Clanton.

"I followed your coverage of Mike Black’s 2019 case, and with great interest I’m now watching his 2024 case unfold.

I’ve known Mike personally for many years now. I’ve always thought him to be sort of “eccentric.” He’s had a rough few years with family and legal issues but seemed to be mostly improving his life since leaving jail in 2019. Unfortunately Mike has been in a destructive downward spiral for at least the past month, and probably longer than that. I believe he has serious mental health issues that are most definitely exacerbated by heavy abuse of various hallucinogenic drugs. I last saw Mike in person about a month ago, and his personality seemed to have completely changed in a relatively short time. He spoke in a thuggish, aggressive tone like some sort of prison gangster. He spoke about heavy drugs, weapons, and having made threats to people in Trinidad. He was extremely intoxicated and erratic. I could go into more detail, but I was worried enough that I almost called law enforcement to check on him. I wasn’t sure if he was just talking/acting “tough”, so I thought maybe he just needed to sober up. Now it seems I should have alerted the authorities to his behavior. Mike really has become a danger to himself and those around him. Please do continue to provide updates on this current case."

This is a second email I received about Michael Black.

"Thank you so much for your coverage over the years of Mike Black. The man is truly a menace and not just because of drugs (although those definitely make it worse). In southern California we were able to use the information you had collected to help on a case down here. "

"He has NOT been mostly doing well between 2019 and 2023, he has had other people to threaten, stalk and harass in counties and states near and far."

Hopefully these new charges will keep him in jail and give his victims some peace. I would love to be notified if/when he makes bail. Thank you again for your coverage."

While searching for Michael Black, I found two other cases about a Matthew Dean Black. These cases are of interest to the comunity and other readers affected.

Matthew Dean Black has two 2024 cases. One case is a misdemeamor; PC 166 (a) (1) "disorderly, contemptuous, or insolent behavior committed during the sitting of a court of justice, in the immediate view and presence of the court, and directly tending to interrupt its proceedings or to impair the respect due to its authority." That case was filed 4/8 with an arraignment on 5/14.

The other case is a civil petition for elder abuse. A temporary restraining order was granted which is now a permanent one. Victim is 65 year old Craig Smith. Matthew Dean Black is Smith's stepson and roomate. There were other allegations in the petition about drugs and money.

Court documents for Matthew Dean Black: