By Brian Brant
(NEW YORK) New York prosecutors in the case against Michael Avenatti, the former high-profile attorney for adult-film star Stormy Daniels, are requesting that he receives a “very substantial” prison sentence after being convicted of attempting to extort millions of dollars from Nike.
The Hill reports officials in Manhattan Federal Court noted probation office officials recommended an eight-year prison term for Avenatti.
Avenatti rose to fame representing Daniels in her case against former President Donald Trump, and even floated an early bid for president in 2020 before he was convicted in February 2020 of attempting to extort up to $25 million from Nike.
“The defendant, a prominent attorney and media personality with a large public following, betrayed his client and sought to enrich himself by weaponizing his public profile in an attempt to extort a publicly-traded company out of tens of millions of dollars,” prosecutors wrote in their Wednesday court request, in a document first obtained by the Associated Press.
Prosecutors attached victim impact statements to their request, with Nike’s lawyers writing that Avenatti cost the company billions of dollars by alleging that criminal activities at the company had reached the “highest levels.”
"This was an egregious abuse of trust, and it warrants real and serious punishment,” they continued.
Avenatti’s lawyers said their client said in a sentencing memo last week that he should serve no more than six months in prison.
“Avenatti’s epic fall and public shaming has played out in front of the entire world,” his attorneys wrote. “The Court may take judicial notice of this fact, as Avenatti’s cataclysmic fall has been well-documented.”
The California attorney was also charged in 2019 with defrauding Daniels of hundreds of millions of dollars from her book deal. He pleaded not guilty.