Manslaughter case dismissed for Mesa man charged in choking death
An Arizona court commissioner dismissed the case of a Mesa man who was charged with manslaughter after he was accused of choking another man to death last month.
Calvin Glasby, 44, was charged with reckless manslaughter, a Class 2 felony — the second most serious offense — after the death of Randall Black, 41. On Jan. 24, the two had a physical altercation at Miles Motel at 5911 E. Main St. in Mesa, according to court documents.
Multiple witnesses at the scene said they saw Glasby put Black in a continuous chokehold for approximately 10 minutes, court documents show. Some witnesses said they heard Black say he could not breathe.
After police and medical personnel arrived and life-saving efforts were made, Black was pronounced dead at the scene. Glasby fled to his motel room before police arrived. That's when witnesses guided police to his location.
Glasby said he was acting in self-defense after Black confronted him, pulled out a gun and accused him of having sex with his girlfriend, court documents show. However, Black was later found to be unarmed, according to the documents.
Maricopa County Superior Court Commissioner Rodney Mitchell dismissed Glasby's case without prejudice on Jan. 27, three days after the incident. That means prosecutors can still file future charges if they choose.
But Mitchell said that conviction was not likely at this time, and that more information was needed before being able to proceed further in the case.
Most of the incident was captured by video surveillance cameras. Black is seen initiating the fight by punching Glasby outside his motel room, according to court documents. In response, Glasby is seen throwing something back at him. Glasby later admitted to police that he threw a soda can at the victim.
The documents say that Glasby is then seen grabbing Black's legs and bringing him to the ground where he gets on top of Black and holds him down. The video ends with witnesses trying to pull Glasby off Black and telling him to let Black go.
Glasby denied knowing Black. He told police that on January 22, Black and another person pulled a gun on him for an unknown reason, according to court documents.
On the day of the incident, Glasby said that Black confronted him, alleging that he was sleeping with his girlfriend. Glasby denied those allegations. Black then punched Glasby in the face, according to court documents and their description of the surveillance video.
Glasby admitted to taking Black to the ground. According to him, Black said he was going to kill him. He told police that he got control of Black by placing his arms around the victim's torso and pinning his arms to his body. However, Glasby denied placing Black in a chokehold, despite witness statements and surveillance footage. Instead, he said that his body weight shifted towards Black's upper torso during their struggle.
Glasby said he felt he had the right to hold Black down to prevent him from continued assault. He told police he did not let go of Black until he felt it was safe to do so, and denied ever hearing Black ask to be let go or claim that he could not breathe.
When police reached Glasby at his motel room, he repeatedly told them,
"I had to defend myself."
This reporting follows crimes The Republic began to cover in 2023 and is part of our commitment to tell the story from start to finish.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Manslaughter case dismissed for Mesa man charged in choking death
