NEW YORK (Washington Insider Magazine) – Stormy Daniels, a former adult film performer, told jurors on Friday that she had no choice but to employ now-disgraced lawyer Michael Avenatti since other lawyers were terrified of her and that she was out of options.
Daniels is appearing in a federal case against Avenatti, 50, who is charged with stealing approximately $300,000 of an $800,000 advance meant for his former client’s book “Full Disclosure,” which was published in 2018.
Details regarding an alleged affair she had with property developer and tv Personality Donald Trump were featured in her memoirs.
Wire fraud and aggravated identity fraud are charges against Avenatti, who has pleaded not guilty.
Daniels is up against the extremely unusual task of addressing cross-examination questions from the defendant, Avenatti.
Avenatti’s plea to appear as his own attorney was granted earlier this week by U.S. District Court Judge Jesse M. Furman. Furman accepted the unusual step after Avenatti alleged a “breakdown” with his counselors over trial strategy.
Avenatti referenced an agreement they signed that stated the attorney will be subject to a reasonable share to be settled upon between them if he ever assisted them in securing a lucrative book deal.
Avenatti inquired if Daniels’ contract stipulated that he be entitled to a portion of the proceeds from her book contract.
“You are very entitled,” Daniels retorted, eliciting a few faint giggles from the courtroom crowd in lower Manhattan.
On Friday, the gallery featured Michael Cohen, Trump’s longtime fixer and legal advisor, who paid Daniels to keep their alleged romance hidden.
Cohen was in the courtroom earlier this week, according to NBC News, to allegedly taunt Avenatti. The defendant made derogatory comments about him, mocking his past support for Trump.
As a vocal adversary of the then-president, Avenatti was one of the most well-known individuals on cable news for much of the Trump administration.
For accusations he made towards sports equipment and clothing company Nike, Avenatti was convicted of extortion, transmission of interstate communications with the purpose to extort, and wire fraud in 2020.
He was sentenced to 2½ years in prison by a federal judge last year, and he is scheduled to report to jail later this year for that conviction.
