It’s going to be a while before Michael Avenatti gets out of federal prison.
The disgraced lawyer and cable news star received a four-year sentence for defrauding Stormy Daniels on Thursday, Fox News reported.
Avenatti was convicted of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in February, with a federal court determining that the ex-lawyer had stolen $300,000 from Daniels, a high-profile client.
Daniels, who retained Avenatti’s services in a legal battle against former President Donald Trump, alleged that Avenatti stole the money from her own book advance instead of passing the money to his client.
It’s the second prison sentence Avenatti has received since his 2019 arrest for attempting to extort Nike. A federal judge sentenced Avenatti to 2 and a hallf years in that case in July 2021.
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Avenatti did get some good news in the hearing.
His four-year sentence is going to be served concurrently with the sentence he received from the Nike trial — meaning he’ll serve both of them at the same time.
Because both of Avenatti’s convictions are federal, he’ll have to serve 85 percent of his four years before he’s eligible for early release consideration.
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In a statement before learning his sentence, Avenatti spoke for twelve minutes. The former cable news star admitted to a “series of mistakes,” admitting that he would forever be known as a “disgraced lawyer.”
He had previously requested to be sentenced remotely instead of appearing in court, a request that Judge Jesse Furman denied.
Avenatti invented himself as a progressive cable news star in the first two years of Donald Trump’s presidency.
Prior to being convicted and sentenced to prison, now disgraced lawyer Michael Avenatti was fawned over by the media, making over 250 appearances in a single year. pic.twitter.com/5767ajmVsY
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) July 9, 2021
Seems like an appropriate time for a flashback:
That Time the Media Dubbed Michael Avenatti ‘Savior of the Republic’ pic.twitter.com/qrQeBFH3ZI
— Washington Free Beacon (@FreeBeacon) June 2, 2022
The left-wing lawyer was even touted as a 2020 presidential contender.
Remember when CNN was pitching him as a presidential candidate?https://t.co/jdz7kBwAgV
— Bongino Report (@BonginoReport) June 2, 2022
Avenatti has another upcoming federal trial that could land him even more prison time.
The disgraced political pit bull will face a federal retrial on fraud charges in California, according to Fox. That case first ended in a mistrial in August when a judge ruled that prosecutors hadn’t handed over all the relevant trial evidence.
Similarly to the Daniels trial, the California federal charges involve allegations that Avenatti stole $10 million from his own legal clients.
