Avenatti Violated Terms Of Release Again, Prosecutors Say

Disgraced attorney Michael Avenatti may have violated terms of his temporary release from jail again, prosecutors allege.

Prosecutors with the US attorney’s office for the Central District of California allege in a filing made Sunday that Avenatti, who once represented porn star Stormy Daniels, may have used his friend’s computer to both write and file five different filings, according to CNN.

The computer belongs to Avenatti’s friend Jay Manheimer, CNN reports. Avenatti was released from prison into Manheimer’s home for 90 days home confinement to protect him from coronavirus dangers present in prison.

Part of the terms of Avenatti’s release forbade him from using computers or devices connected to the internet, according to CNN. Avenatti may be sent back to jail if he is found to be in violation of the terms of his release.

Prosecutors say that metadata associated with the court filings indicates that Manheimer was the “author” of the documents. Avenatti had told a judge recently that he needed to use a computer to prepare for trial, according to CNN.

“The government believes that defendant has likely violated the conditions of his temporary release by using his third-party custodian Jay Manheimer’s internet-accessible computer to draft his last five filings in this case,” prosecutors wrote in the filing. “At a minimum, defendant and his counsel have not been candid with this Court.”

“The government therefore requests that the Court hold a hearing to further inquire as to whether defendant has violated the conditions of his temporary release and provide the parties with an opportunity to address the appropriate remedy, if any, if defendant did in fact commit such violations,” the prosecutors added.

Avenatti was also arrested in January while attending a California State bar disciplinary hearing for a separate legal matter following allegations that he violated terms set for his pre-trial release.