Names and faces
Just hours after being arrested while performing at an Ohio strip club, adultfilm actress Stormy Daniels no longer faces charges that she improperly let patrons touch her, her attorney, Michael Avenatti said. Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, was arrested Wednesday night after a performance at Sirens, a strip club in Columbus, for touching a patron at a “sexually oriented” business in violation of the law commonly known as the Community Defense Act. Avenatti said Daniels was set up in a Columbus police sting operation, something police deny. Charging documents said that Daniels, who was seminude, touched some of the patrons’ breasts and allowed them to touch her. She allegedly performed the same act with several officers who approached the stage and forced one officer’s head into her bare chest. State law prohibits dancers from touching customers and customers touching dancers — excluding immediate family members. However, on Thursday, prosecutors dropped the charges because Daniels had appeared only once at the Columbus club and the law refers to someone “who regularly appears nude or seminude” at a club. Avenatti successfully argued Daniels “has not appeared consistently and repeatedly at Sirens,” according to prosecutors. Daniels has said she had sex with President Donald Trump in 2006, which Trump has denied. She’s suing Trump and his former longtime personal attorney, Michael Cohen, and seeking to invalidate a nondisclosure agreement she signed days before the 2016 presidential election. Police said two other women were arrested along with Daniels. Prosecutors are checking whether those women will be prosecuted, said city attorney Zach Klein.
Tyler Perry is warning fans not to get scammed. The actor, comedian and director said in a Facebook video that he’s not giving away anything. The 48-year-old directed a strong comment at whoever was making the posts, saying: “Stop it, devil.” Perry did not point to anything specific, but said there are as many as 30 fake promotions daily that his team shuts down. He warned people not to give out their personal information in response to the fake offers. The New Orleans-born Perry said that while he has given cars and houses to employees and friends, he’s not giving away anything on Facebook.