Michael Avenatti, the lawyer for adult film star Stormy Daniels, vowed to fight the “bogus charges” his client faces after she was apparently arrested early Thursday while performing at an Ohio strip club, in what he blasted as a “setup” that was “politically motivated.”
Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, was arrested for “allegedly allowing a customer to touch her while on stage in a non-sexual manner,” Avenatti tweeted, with the hashtags “setup” and “basta,” which is Italian for enough.
Just rcvd word that my client @StormyDaniels was arrested in Columbus Ohio whole performing the same act she has performed across the nation at nearly a hundred strip clubs. This was a setup & politically motivated. It reeks of desperation. We will fight all bogus charges. #Basta
— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) July 12, 2018
“Are you kidding me? They are devoting law enforcement resources to sting operations for this? There has to be higher priorities!” Avenatti said in another tweet, appearing to suggest a set-up.
Daniels was topless when she “knowingly” touched a female Columbus police officer’s buttocks, placed her hands on the officer’s breast and then put her chest in the officer’s face while “on the premise of a sexually oriented business,” according to charging documents from the Franklin County Municipal Court obtained by WBNS.
The charging docs obtained by WBNS @10TV allege Stormy Daniels violated Ohio law by touching a "specified anatomical area" of female and male officers posing as patrons, and also touched them with her own "specified anatomical area." pic.twitter.com/kykV6MlQfG
— Steven Portnoy (@stevenportnoy) July 12, 2018
A 2007 state law called the Community Defense Act prohibits dancers from touching customers and vice versa – excluding immediate family members.
Although the law has been in effect for over a decade, a 2017 report from The Columbus Dispatch found that it is seldom enforced.
The porn star’s lawyer said the arrest “reeks of desperation,” and said Daniels was performing the same routine she had done “at nearly a hundred strip clubs” throughout the country.
We expect her to be released on bail shortly. We also expect that she will be charged with a misdemeanor for allowing “touching.” We will vehemently contest all charges. #Basta
— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) July 12, 2018
Daniels, who claims to have had sex with President Donald Trump in 2006 when he was married, is suing the president and his former personal lawyer Michael Cohen over a nondisclosure agreement she signed to keep quiet on the alleged affair. Trump has denied the accusation.
According to the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Daniels was booked on a misdemeanor charge on Thursday. The strip club where she reportedly performed, called Sirens, declined to comment when asked about the matter.
Avenatti confirmed to Fox News that his client was arrested just after midnight Thursday.
Daniels posted bail and is scheduled for arraignment on Friday, according to court documents.
