Michael Avenatti Found Guilty On All Counts at Nike Extortion Trial

Avenatti was accused of attempting to extort up to $25 million from the apparel giant

Michael Avenatti Found Guilty On All Counts at Nike Extortion Trial
Michael Avenatti, the former lawyer for adult film actress Stormy Daniels, in 2019. (Photo by Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)
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The lawyer who made waves when he represented porn star Stormy Daniels in her legal disputes with President Donald Trump is now caught in a legal storm of his own making.

On Friday, a jury in U.S. District Court in Manhattan found California lawyer Michael Avenatti guilty on all three extortion counts he was facing for attempting to seize up to $25 million from Nike.

Avenatti, who was representing youth basketball coach Gary Franklin at the time, was charged in March for demanding Nike shell out millions to prevent him from going public with allegations of payments being made by the athletic apparel company to top high school hoops players.

Now, thanks to the jury, Avenatti stands convicted of transmission of interstate communications with intent to extort, attempted extortion and honest services wire fraud.

When the verdict was read, Avenatti stared straight ahead and showed no reaction, according to court reporter Stephen Brown.

The 48-year-old attorney has upcoming trials this spring in two other federal criminal cases for allegedly stealing Daniels’ book advance and committing fraud in California.

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