Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Prosecutors urged a judge Wednesday to impose a "very substantial" prison sentence on Michael Avenatti for trying to extort millions of dollars from Nike.
Prosecutors noted in a Manhattan federal court submission that Probation Office officials recommend an eight-year prison term for the California attorney who gained fame three years ago through his representation of porn star Stormy Daniels against then-U.S. President Donald Trump.
"The defendant, a prominent attorney and media personality with a large public following, betrayed his client and sought to enrich himself by weaponizing his public profile in an attempt to extort a publicly-traded company out of tens of millions of dollars. This was an egregious abuse of trust, and it warrants real and serious punishment," prosecutors wrote.
The government said Avenatti, representing the director of a youth basketball program in Los Angeles, tried to force the apparel maker to pay him up to US$25 million to keep him quiet about allegations of corruption involving Nike and college athletics.
Avenatti, 50, was convicted at trial last year. In a pre-sentence submission last week, his lawyers urged leniency, saying six months in prison and a year of home detention would be sufficient punishment.
Prosecutors attached victim impact statements from Nike and Avenatti's former client, Gary Franklin Sr. They urged the judge to order Avenatti to pay $1 million in restitution to Nike for its legal fees.
In a victim impact statement, Nike's lawyers wrote that Avenatti did considerable harm to the company when he followed through on threats to cause Nike billions of dollars in losses by falsely alleging in a tweet prior to his arrest that criminal conduct at the company reached the "highest levels." Nike's stock price immediately dropped a dollar, representing $300 million, they said.
"Nike executives were shocked," the lawyers wrote. "Nike had made a decision to not pay Mr. Avenatti, and now they were watching as he carried out what he had criminally threatened to do."
They said Avenatti issued a "daily barrage of Twitter posts" for weeks after his arrest, "leveling provably false accusations against Nike and the high school athletes who competed in Nike's grassroots program."
In his victim impact statement, Franklin said Avenatti's actions "devastated me financially, professionally, and emotionally" and he asked the sentencing judge to consider that in deciding punishment for a man who never apologized to him.
"The actions of Mr. Avenatti have destroyed my reputation in my community. Enrollment in my club is at a record low. I no longer feel welcome in places I once felt comfortable. I have struggled with my mental health. My family has suffered. Because of Mr. Avenatti's actions, this `scandal' is now the first result when you Google my name," he wrote.
Last week, Avenatti's lawyers said their client deserved leniency in part because nobody lost money from the crime, he had suffered enormous public shame and a recurrence was impossible since Avenatti will never practice law again.
"He cannot go anywhere in public without inducing and subjecting himself to vitriolic comments and abuse. These circumstances alone would deter anyone in Avenatti's shoes from engaging in similar conduct," they wrote.
A message seeking reaction to Wednesday's filings was sent to Avenatti's lawyers.
Later this year, Avenatti faces trial in Los Angeles federal court on charges alleging he cheated clients and others out of millions of dollars.
Early next year, he is scheduled to go to trial in Manhattan on charges that he defrauded Daniels out of hundreds of thousands of dollars she was owed for a book deal. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
One of the two pilots aboard an airplane carrying fuel reported there was a fire on the airplane shortly before it crashed and burned outside Fairbanks, killing both people on board, a federal aviation official said Wednesday.
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
The Edmonton Police Service has released a number of surveillance videos related to a series of extortion cases in the city now dubbed 'Project Gaslight.'
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.