Stormy Daniels tells jury Michael Avenatti ‘stole from me and lied to me’
Stormy Daniels and Michael Avenatti, two former friends once united in a mission to take down ex-president Donald Trump, were reunited in a federal courtroom in New York on Thursday – but facing off as enemies.
The adult film actor and producer told a jury in the criminal case against Avenatti, her former lawyer, that he “stole from me and lied to me”.
Prosectors accused Avenatti, 50, of pilfering more than $300,000 from book deal proceeds Daniels was due in 2018 for the tell-all memoir of her exploits in the pornography industry and the brief affair she says she had with Trump.
Trump denies the affair, Avenatti denies the charges and since he discharged his own lawyer earlier in the week, it fell to Avenatti to cross-examine Daniels on Thursday afternoon, not long before court ended for the day and after she had already testified for the prosecution for more than three hours.
It began cordially enough, on the fourth day of testimony. “Ms Daniels, good afternoon,” Avenatti said.“Good afternoon,” Daniels responded.
He went on to ask how he was supposed to have received payment for the legal services he provided to Daniels.
“From the legal defense fund and the winnings against Donald Trump,” Daniels said, referring to fundraising efforts to cover her legal fees, in addition to an initial $100 payment and her litigation against the former US president.
She added when pressed further by Avenatti that she believed no other ways of compensating him were agreed upon.
Earlier, on the witness stand for the prosecution, Daniels calmly described her relationship with Avenatti when he first represented her and its ultimate deterioration when she learned he had allegedly stolen part of her book advance while telling her that the publisher had not released the money because the book was not doing well and she had not fulfilled publicity requirements.
When she was initially told of her $800,000 book deal she said she shared her joy with Avenatti over text.
“My face was numb from smiling so much,” Daniels told the court.
She recalled he called her “an American hero” and swore that he would never take a penny from her book deal.
“I also want to tell how much I generally love you as a human being. Thank you for letting me into your life,” Avenatti had written in a text message that was read in court.
When Daniels failed to receive the second installment of her book payment on time, she feared the publisher, St Martins Press, was attempting to withhold funds, she said. But she then grew suspicious about her lawyer and purported champion.
The court heard that in August 2018, Avenatti texted Daniels asking for her approval for different actors who would potentially voice the audio version of her memoir, Full Disclosure, and she responded: “Where’s my fucking money?”
Avenatti had allegedly received that second installment but diverted it to a separate account Daniels had no knowledge of, the jury was told.
After a third payment had not reached her, Daniels, reading the correspondence aloud to the court, had texted Avenatti saying: “Find my fucking money” to which he replied in apparent acquiescence: “Word !!!!!! ”
When she found out about the alleged theft, she felt “very, very angry, shock disbelief and I felt very betrayed and stupid”, Daniels told the court.
Daniels presented an upbeat tone, was serious at times and at others shared quips with the judge and the prosecution team.
When asked about the TV show Spooky Babes, in which she and others pursue paranormal activity, Daniels clarified the meaning of the title: “it’s about attractive people”.
On cross-examination, Avenatti asked Daniels if at any point she spoke to a doll named Susan that features on Spooky Babes.
“Yes, she has her own Instagram,” replied Daniels.
Her appearance in court was a highly anticipated moment at the trial of a man who parlayed his representation of Daniels in her legal battles against Trump into a high-profile role as a media-friendly Trump adversary. Before she took the stand, assistant US attorney Robert Sobelman, prosecuting, said: “The government calls Stephanie Clifford, also known as Stormy Daniels.” He then asked if Daniels preferred to use any other name.
“Stormy Daniels,” she said, explaining that was her stage name.
Daniels said she had hired Avenatti in early 2018 to represent her in her claims against Trump.
Daniels sought legal representation because she wanted to speak publicly about her claims that she had a sexual tryst with Trump more than a decade earlier. She had been paid $130,000 days before the 2016 presidential election to remain silent. Trump has denied the claims.
She said a formal agreement called for her to pay Avenatti $100. She gave it to him in cash at a restaurant in Los Angeles, and he used it to pay for lunch.
She said a crowd-funding website raised $650,000 for Avenatti’s payment.
Avenatti denies wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. The trial continues.