NEW YORK - Michael Avenatti, the brash California lawyer who once represented Stormy Daniels in lawsuits against President Donald Trump, was sentenced Thursday to 2 1/2 years in prison for trying to extort up to $25 million from Nike by threatening the company with bad publicity.Avenatti, 50, was convicted of charges including attempted extortion and honest services fraud in connection with his representation of a Los Angeles youth basketball league organizer who was upset that Nike had ended its league sponsorship.Criminal fraud charges on two coasts disrupted Avenatti's rapid ascent to fame.
Regardless of the outcome at Thursday's hearing, he faces the start of a fraud trial next week in the Los Angeles area, a second California criminal.