Disgraced lawyer Michael Avenatti, who spent over a year appearing on cable trashing Donald Trump, was convicted of trying to embezzle $30 million from Nike. He also faces trials in California and New York for allegedly embezzling money from clients and he can no longer practice law in California.
Prior to his arrests, during his many TV appearances, Michael Avenatti said he would take down President Trump and “save the Republic.” He even began a presidential campaign with CNN’s Brian Stelter telling him he could see him as president.
Avenatti alleges in a new filing with the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) that he was mistreated while in federal custody in retaliation for his criticisms of Trump and former Attorney General William Barr.
Zachary Margulis-Ohnuma, a lawyer with ZMO Law who is representing Avenatti, said the filing was sent to the BOP on Wednesday. Avenatti is alleging in part that prison officials limited his contact with other inmates, friends, and family, subjected him to harsh conditions in the wing where he was housed, and allowed him access to one book — “The Art of the Deal,” co-written by Trump — as retaliation for being a vocal opponent of the former president.
They should have locked him up with 24/7 videos of Trump speeches on a loop.
Avenatti is seeking $94 million from the United States or $1 million for each day he says he was held in solitary confinement or lockdown, according to a copy of the filing obtained by CBS News. He alleges under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) that the federal government is liable for intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligent infliction of emotional distress, false imprisonment, and false arrest, among other acts, while he was held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center (MCC) in Manhattan in 2020.
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