Lawyer Michael Avenatti pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges he extorted Nike, just hours after entering a not-guilty plea to defrauding porn star Stormy Daniels, the client who propelled him to fame as an outspoken adversary of U.S. President Donald Trump. Avenatti represented Daniels in lawsuits related to the hush money and later in negotiating a book deal. Avenatti told Daniels the publisher "owes me a payment" and that he was "on it," prosecutors said. Daniels has not received that payment, prosecutors said. For his part, Cohen is about three weeks into a three-year prison term after pleading guilty to campaign finance violations related to the hush money payment to Daniels and other financial crimes.

Source: CBC News May 28, 2019 16:52 UTC