Michael Avenatti convicted of stealing from Stormy Daniels

NEW YORK (AP) — Michael Avenatti was convicted by a jury on charges that he cheated porn actor Stormy Daniels out of nearly $300,000 that she was supposed to get for writing a book about an alleged tryst with former president Donald Trump.

The verdict was returned Friday at a federal court in New York.

The result was the culmination of an unusual trial in which Avenatti acted as his own lawyer and got to cross-examine Daniels about her belief in ghosts.

Earlier Friday, the jury foreperson told Judge Jesse Furman that a juror was acting on feelings and emotions. The judge reminded jurors of his original legal instructions and their pledge to consider the evidence. A short time later, Avenatti was found guilty.

The disgraced lawyer now reportedly faces up to 22 years in prison for Friday’s conviction of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.

Avenatti still faces other legal problems. He has yet to begin serving a 2 1/2 year prison sentence he received in 2020 for trying to extort up to $25 million from sportswear giant Nike.

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