The first of two suspects arrested in connection with a February 2023 sexual assault at the former Black N’ Blue restaurant agreed to a three-year prison term Friday as part of a plea deal.
Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station deputies arrested Clarence Dewayne Ross, 37, of California City, on May 29, 2025, in connection with an L.A. County Sheriff’s Department Special Victims Bureau investigation into the incident at the now-shuttered Valencia restaurant.
SVU detectives filed an arrest warrant for Ross, who was taken into custody on suspicion of oral copulation with an intoxicated victim.
He pleaded no contest Friday to one felony count of that charge in connection with his role in the 2023 assault.
After Ross was arrested and initially held in lieu of $100,000 bail, he was released the following day on his own recognizance, according to LASD records available online.
Ross was given the sexually violent predator advisement by the people by Judge Hilleri Merritt, and then waived his right to be formally sentenced by him.
The terms Ross agreed to were listed on his felony advisement of rights, waiver and plea form filed with L.A. County Superior Court records available online.
He’s due back in court for formal sentencing July 29 at the San Fernando Courthouse.
The initial Special Victims Unit investigation identified a second suspect through the analysis of DNA evidence, according to SVU Sgt. Joseph Mesa.
A second man was arrested by patrol deputies in November on suspicion of rape by use of intoxicants, according to Sheriff’s Department arrest records.
It’s unclear whether the charges were dismissed or declined for filing, for the second suspect, as a judge at the San Fernando Courthouse sealed the proceedings against the man under Penal Code section 851.91.
That law allows individuals to petition the court to seal arrest records for offenses that did not result in a conviction, according to the state court’s website. “This means the record is hidden from public view and background checks, and you can legally state the arrest never occurred in most circumstances.”
The Black N’ Blue restaurant/night club in Valencia abruptly closed in 2024 after numerous complaints.
A formal accusation investigated by Alcoholic Beverage Control cited 19 different criminal incidents that originated from Black N’ Blue while it was operational, ranging from public intoxication to the sexual assault allegation to a shooting that occurred on Halloween in 2023.
The shooting led to attempted-murder conviction and 23-years-to-life sentence for the shooter, Isaac Clark, in April 2025.
The storefront has been vacant since Black N’ Blue’s departure in February 2024.
