Michael Gold, Nate Schweber and Corina Knoll

Stepping into an elevator at a courthouse in Manhattan between two separate appearances Tuesday, Avenatti called to a crowd of reporters: “Anybody know when the president and Don Jr. are going to be arraigned?”

A pugnacious lawyer, Avenatti’s cocksure attitude and brash criticisms of President Donald Trump as Stormy Daniel’s attorney helped turn him into a national figure.

But then he was arrested in March on charges that he tried to extort millions of dollars from Nike, and last week he was accused of defrauding Daniels, the adult-film star whom he represented in a lawsuit against Trump.

On Tuesday morning, Avenatti pleaded not guilty in U.S. District Court to charges that he defrauded and stole close to $300,000 from Daniels.

Hours later, in a different courthouse nearby, he again pleaded not guilty to charges that he attempted to extort money from Nike. He answered “100% not guilty” to each of the four counts.

Dressed in a navy blue suit and brown leather shoes with shiny buckles, Avenatti — whose private jet was seized by federal authorities earlier this year — was mobbed by media as he walked between the two federal courthouses in lower Manhattan.

Brash as always, he said that he intended for the cases to go to trial and was sure he would be exonerated. “We’re going to let the system play out,” he said, “and that’s why God created a jury trial.”

A plaintiff's attorney who had won several big settlements, Avenatti vaulted into the spotlight in March 2018 when he filed a lawsuit on behalf of Daniels.

The adult-film star, whose legal name is Stephanie Clifford, claimed she had a sexual relationship with the president and received a $130,000 payment to keep quiet about it in October 2016, a month before Trump was elected president.

In her lawsuit, she was seeking release from a nondisclosure agreement she had signed. In a separate lawsuit, she claimed that Trump had defamed her on Twitter. Both lawsuits were ultimately dismissed.

While the legal battle proceeded, however, Avenatti worked hard to win in the court of public opinion. He frequently commandeered airtime on cable and broadcast networks, where he presented himself as a legal crusader for the anti-Trump “resistance” movement.

In the process, he became a hero to some on the left because of his frequent and blistering critiques of Trump. His vociferousness sparked speculation that he was considering a television news career, and at one point he hinted at a possible election run to challenge the president.

At the same time, federal prosecutors said, he was defrauding the client who helped raise his national profile.

Prosecutors charged Avenatti last week with wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, saying he took more than $295,000 from Daniels. Prosecutors said he used a fake letter with Daniels’ signature to divert part of her book advance into an account he controlled, then used the money for personal expenses like travel and payments on his Ferrari.

Daniels and Avenatti announced separately in early March that they had ended their professional relationship. Later, Daniels said on Twitter that Avenatti “had dealt with me extremely dishonestly.”

Matthew Podolsky, an assistant U.S. attorney, called the case involving Daniels’ book deal “a straightforward fraud.”

Those charges were only the latest in a salvo of charges that Avenatti has faced this year.

In March, he arrived at a meeting in Manhattan with Nike officials and was promptly arrested by the FBI on extortion charges. Prosecutors said he had asked Nike to pay at least $22 million in exchange for evidence that he claimed would prove employees of the apparel company had inappropriately funneled money to college basketball recruits.

The prosecutors in that case said Avenatti and his client, a basketball coach, had threatened to release the evidence unless Nike paid them at least $22 million.

In a separate federal indictment filed in California, Avenatti was also accused of stealing millions of dollars from five of his clients, filing fake tax returns and lying during bankruptcy proceedings to an IRS collection agent, a bankruptcy court, a bankruptcy trustee and creditors.

Avenatti has denied all of the allegations. He pleaded not guilty to the charges in California last month.

If convicted on all of the charges pending against him, Avenatti could be sentenced to more than 300 years in prison.

Yet, outside the courthouses, Avenatti brought up the president’s name, depicting his latest legal troubles as politically motivated retribution.

“I am now in the fight of my life against the ultimate Goliath: the Trump administration,” he said.

This article originally appeared in <a id="2002d34e-9f0e-3c62-ab4d-b7f5bc369e78" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/28/nyregion/avenatti-stormy-daniels.html">The New York Times</a>.

Under Indictment, Defiant Avenatti Tries to Turn Focus Back to Trump

NEW YORK — Even as he faced multiple federal criminal charges, Michael Avenatti couldn’t stop himself.

Under indictment, defiant Avenatti tries to turn focus back to Trump

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Michael Gold, Nate Schweber and Corina Knoll

Articles written by the author

Under indictment, defiant Avenatti tries to turn focus back to Trump