Michael Avenatti, the lawyer who represented Stormy Daniels against Donald Trump, has been jailed for attempting to sue Nike

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A weeping, remorseful Michael Avenatti, the brash lawyer who formerly represented Stormy Daniels in lawsuits against President Donald Trump, has begun a two -and -a -half -year prison sentence on extortion trial up to $ US25 million ($ 33.6 million ) from Nike by threatening the company with bad publicity.

Key points: Avenatti threatened Nike that he would hurt the reputation and price of the stock unless it paid him millions He still faces other legal issues for allegedly stealing money from clients nivenatti said that he ruined his career, relationships and family

Avenatti, 50, rose to fame by publicly sparring with Mr Trump, but criminal fraud charges on both coasts of the US have interrupted his rapid ascent.

Avenatti was convicted of threatening to expose the sportswear company’s alleged bad pay to the families of college basketball prospects, unless it paid up to $ US25 million for him and another lawyer to conduct an investigation. .

Recordings show that Avenatti told Nike lawyers that he would “pull the lid” on the company and remove $ US10 billion from the stock market value unless it bows to his demands. The company denies any wrongdoing.

Prosecutors say Avenatti is counting on a large salary to cover his own debts.

USDistrict Judge Paul GGardephe called Avenatti’s behavior “extremely outrageous,” saying he “hijacked his client’s claims” and “used those claims to further his own agenda, which is raising millions of dollars from Nike for itself ”.

Avenatti, the judge added, “has become intoxicated with the power of his platform, or what he sees as the power of his platform. He has become someone who has operated as if the laws and policies that apply to everyone do not apply. to him “.

Before the judge spoke, Avenatti delivered an emotional statement, sometimes choking and speaking in tears. “Me and I just ruined my career, my relationships and my life,” he said.

“Your Honor, I have learned that all the fame, popularity and money in the world is meaningless. TV and Twitter, your Honor, are meaningless,” he said.

Avenatti became famous by representing adult film actor Stormy Daniels in lawsuits against Donald Trump.

AP: Mary Altaffer

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He ended his statement by saying he hoped his three children, including two teenage daughters who wrote letters to the judge, would embarrass him.

“Because if they’re shy, it means their moral compass is exactly where it should be,” he said.

On his way out of the courthouse, he stopped moments before a set of microphones while his lawyer, Danya Perry, told reporters: “A new Michael Avenatti has been greatly demoted as a result of this experience. “

The judge agreed, noting that Avenatti did not show remorse or accept responsibility for his crimes until he was sentenced, when he expressed “what I believe is sincere remorse”.

The judge also said conditions were “horrible” in the Manhattan federal lockup where Avenatti spent 100 days behind bars last year, mostly confined alone. He said it was hard to believe such conditions would occur in the US.

Avenatti’s legal woe is far from over. He also faces the start of a fraud trial next week in the Los Angeles area, a second criminal trial in California later this year and a separate trial next year in Manhattan, for which he is charged. to defraud Daniels of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to search, up and down arrows for volume. WatchDuras: 1 minute 11 seconds1m 11s At the time he was charged, prosecutors said Avenatti told Nike they would face repeated deductions if they did not pay him.

Avenatti represented Daniels in 2018 in lawsuits against Mr. Trump, who frequently appeared on cable news programs to discredit the Republican president. Daniels said a trial with Trump’s attorney a decade before it resulted in Mr. Trump’s personal attorney paying him $ US130,000 in 2016 to keep quiet. Mr. Trump denied the affair.

Avenatti even researched the run against Mr. Trump in 2020, boasting that he had “no problem raising money.”

Those political aspirations evaporated when prosecutors in California and New York charged Avenatti with fraud in March 2019. California prosecutors said he enjoyed a $ US200,000-a-month living while cheated. clients from millions of dollars and failed to pay hundreds of thousands in Internal Revenue Services.

Charges he defrauded Daniels from the proceeds from a book deal that followed weeks later. Avenatti pleaded not guilty to all of the charges and kept him a victim of politically motivated attacks.

Ms. Perry told the judge that recordings of threats Avenatti made to Nike’s lawyers had “creep into the skin,” but she said she also felt bad spirits from people who expressed hatred for her client.

AP / Reuters

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