| After
Avenatti Finances Unsealed By Inner City
Press Nike Surrender Date Pushed To Feb 28
By Matthew
Russell Lee, Patreon
Song
Radio
BBC
- Decrypt
- LightRead - Order
Affidavit
SDNY COURTHOUSE,
Nov 3 – Michael Avenatti's
financial affidavit to get a
publicly paid lawyer, which
Inner City Press has formally
sought to have unsealed for
eleven months, were on July 27
been ordered unsealed. Order.
Podcast here.
Aug 13 podcast here.
On August 27
Avenatti's Federal Defenders
wrote to Judge Furman to
arguing that, now that
Avenatti's iPad has been
accessed by DOJ, they do not
want the DOJ taint-team
involved. They asked for Judge
Furman himself to get involved
in the review.
On September 9,
Avenatti's motions have been
denied. Full order here.
On October 12, it
emerged that the January 10
Stormy Daniels trial date is
in doubt: "ORDER as to Michael
Avenatti: The Court having
conferred with the Jury
Department, it is unclear
whether it would be feasible
to hold trial in this case on
or about January 10, 2022, as
currently planned, in the
event that (as the Court
anticipates will be the case)
the District is still
operating with strict COVID-19
protocols."
On November 2,
with the addition of a
questionnaire, the date moved
to February 7: "SCHEDULING
ORDER as to Michael Avenatti:
Upon reflection, the Court is
persuaded that the use of a
jury questionnaire in this
case is indeed appropriate and
will serve to make the
selection of a fair and
impartial jury more efficient.
As the Court discussed with
the parties at the conference
held on October 14, 2021, due
to the COVID-19 trial
protocols that are in effect,
that requires a brief
adjournment of the trial date.
This Order sets forth the new
trial date and various
pretrial deadlines. Unless and
until the Court orders
otherwise, trial in this case
shall begin (in a courtroom to
be determined when trial gets
closer) on Monday, February 7,
2022, at 9:30 a.m."
On November 3 in
the Nike case, Avenatti's
surrender date was pushed back
to February 28: "MEMO
ENDORSEMENT as to Michael
Avenatti re: [353]
Modification of Surrender
Date... ENDORSEMENT: The
application is granted.
Defendant Michael Avenatti's
surrender date is adjourned
from December 15, 2021 to
February 28, 2022. SO ORDERED.
(Signed by Judge Paul G.
Gardephe on 11/3/21)."
On October 14
Judge Furman held a proceeding
in the Stormy Daniels case and
Inner City Press live tweeted
it here
and podcast here
On October 29 the
US Attorney's Office filed a
letter asking to move up
Avenatti's surrender date for
his Nike case sentence from
December 15 to November 12,
since his California re-trial
has been postponed without
date certain (sine die) due to
his interlocutory appeal.
Avenatti's
lawyers have fired back that
if anything, the surrender
should be pushed back to
February 28. What will Judge
Gardephe do?
From October
14: Judge Furman said he
is disinclined to require a
jury questionnaire, it would
result in multi-day or -week
jury selection. He notes Judge
Oetken picked jury in one day
[in Parnas] and that
Avenatti's case is no longer
that high profile.
Assistant
US Attorney: We're ready to go
forward. Federal Defender
Dalack (recently had US v.
Hossain Taliban support trial)
- We'd like to adjourn. This
case is different from Parnas.
Avenatti still garners media
attention (?)
Federal
Defender: Jurors will arrive
with strong feelings about Mr.
Avenatti. We'd prefer a
questionnaire. Judge Furman:
Do you think it's legally
required?
FD: It's not
required per se... But we
agreed. Judge Furman: That was
in 2020, this will be 2 years
later
Federal
Defender: When Mr. Avenatti's
financial affidavit was
unseal, that generated
significant media
attention. (NYLJ and
National Law Journal covered
Inner City Press unsealing
win)
Judge Furman: The
Judge Oetkan case may
implicant Mr. Giuliani, Mr.
Trump... Judge Furman: The
deadline for requesting Q1
trial dates is November 15. So
if you're going to file
something...
FD Dalack: What
about a March 2022 trial?
Judge Furman: I have a backlog
of trials. But file a letter
by next Friday. Whether we
proceed with Jan 10
Judge Furman: Or
you could propose a March 2022
trial, perhaps in front of
another judge if I have a time
conflict. [Would Avenatti
prefer to spin the wheel
again, seeking a judge who
wouldn't correctly unseal
judicial documents and still
viewed him a high profile?]
Note: It's not
just snark - whether a jury
questionnaire will be used
turns on how "high profile"
etc the defendant is viewed.
Lev Parnas, for example, did
NOT get a questionnaire, and
jury was picked in one day.
Adjourned
[Meanwhile, Judge
Furman has written to the
Advisory Committee on Criminal
Rules to urge or suggest that
CJA Form 23s "may be judicial
documents subject to a right
of public access" under common
law, the First Amendment or
both. Hear, hear.]
On August 26,
after Avenatti's mistrial in
California due to DOJ missteps
as in US v. Nejad (and now US
v. Virgil Griffith), this
consent motion: "CONSENT
LETTER MOTION addressed to
Judge Paul G. Gardephe from
Scott Srebnick and Danya Perry
dated August 26, 2021 re:
[339] Judgment,,, re: Extend
Surrender Date to December 15,
2021 . Document filed by
Michael Avenatti. (Srebnick,
Scott)."
And on August 27,
it was granted: "MEMO
ENDORSEMENT [350] CONSENT
LETTER MOTION addressed to
Judge Paul G. Gardephe from
Scott Srebnick and Danya Perry
dated August 26, 2021 re:
[339] Judgment re: Extend
Surrender Date to December 15,
2021... ENDORSEMENT...The
application is granted.
(Signed by Judge Paul G.
Gardephe on 8/27/21) (jw)."
Watch this site.
On August 10
Avenatti's Federal Defenders
filed a copy of the affidavit
with multiple redactions. The
form refers on nearly every
question to an attachment,
which is blacked out in absurd
ways. It reads, for example,
"I own stock in two closely
held companies that may have
value: (a) [REDACTED] located
in [REDACTED]
and (b) [REDACTED]
located in [REDACTED]...
I technically
still have an
interest in a
private
aircraft
(model:
HondaJet 420)
that was
seized by the
IRS and is
still in their
possession.
This interest
is held
through a
single-purpose
entity named [REDACTED],"
and so forth.
Inner
City
Press
published the
redacted
affidavit on
its
DocumentCloud
here
and asked,
Will the Court
be accepting
this?
On
August 11, the
correct answer
was: No. "MEMO
ENDORSEMENT as
to Michael
Avenatti (1)
on [139]
LETTER MOTION
re: [139]
LETTER MOTION
addressed to
Judge Jesse M.
Furman from
Robert Baum,
Tamara Giwa
& Andrew
Dalack dated
August 10,
2021 re:
Letter Motion
In Response to
Court's Order
to File
Financial
Affidavit.
ENDORSEMENT:
The Court is
unpersuaded
that privacy
interests
justify
redacting the
names and
locations of
the corporate
entities in
Paragraphs 14,
15, and 17 of
ECF No.
139-1."
After hours on
August 12,
some
redactions
were removed:
Avenatti's owned
a plane
through
Passport 420
LLC; an
unnamed
"non-family-member
acquaintance"
paid a
NY-based
attorney in
the Nike case,
whose name is
redacted.
Unredacted:
Avenatti owns
stock in
Tyrian Systems
(aka Seek
Thermal) of
Santa Barbara,
CA and
Centurion
Holdings I,
LLC of St.
Louis
Missouri."
Not
to fast. Inner
City Press
research in
the hours
after the
removal of the
improper
redactions found
that Centurion
Holdings I,
LLC is based
in Arnold,
Missouri - and
"received a
PPP loan of
$60,477 in
May, 2020."
That's the
Paycheck
Protection
Program; the
funds came
through the
Central Bank
of St. Louis.
Bigger,
the aka: "Seek
Thermal, Inc
of 6300
Hollister Ave
in Goleta,
California received
a
Coronavirus-related
PPP loan from
the SBA of
$1,365,062.00
in April,
2020." We'll
have more on
this.
Watch
this site.
When after
three days of jury selection
the trial of Michael Avenatti
for extorting Nike began on
January 29, 2020 Assistant US
Attorney Robert Sobelman told
the selected jurors that
Avenatti was supposed to look
out for the interests of his
client, but he did not - he
had a weapon, social
media. More on Patreon here.
On August
7, 2020 in the Stormy Daniels
case, Avenatti had motions
heard by U.S. District Court
for the Southern District of
New York Judge Jesse M.
Furman. Inner City Press live
tweeted it, here.
On August
27, Inner City Press filed a
formal request that documents
in the case not be sealed,
full filing on Patreon here.
On
November 12, Inner City Press
made a third filing with Judge
Furman, on a decision
to unseal issued earlier in
the day by SDNY Judge J. Paul
Oetken after Inner City Press
filed to similarly unseal Lev
Parnas' co-defendant David
Correia's financial infor: "we
again ask, why should lower
income and less high profile
defendants in the SDNY -- and
now David Correia -- have
their financial information so
disclosed while Avenatti's
information is sealed in its
entirety? The documents at
issue should not be sealed and
should be made available."
On August
28, 2020 Judge Furman entered
an order: "The Court received
the attached communication
from Matthew Lee of Inner City
Press “seeking leave to be
heard and for the unsealing of
the CJA Form 23, affidavit,
and all associated documents”
relating to this litigation.
To the extent that Mr. Lee
(who is admitted to the bar of
the Southern District of New
York) seeks leave to be heard,
his application is GRANTED.
The Court reserves judgment on
the question of whether
Defendant’s CJA Form 23 and
related documents should be
unsealed. SO ORDERED. Dated:
August 28, 2020 New York, New
York JESSE M. FURMAN." Docket
No. 85, on Inner City Press'
DocumentCloud, here.
Now on
July 27, 2021, Judge Furman
four times citing Inner City
Press has ordered
Avenatti's affidavits
unsealed: "Avenatti filed a
letter brief arguing that the
Initial Financial Affidavit
should remain under seal. ECF
No. 80 (“Def.’s Mem.”).
Thereafter, the Court received
submissions from Inner City
Press, a media outlet that
intervened to seek disclosure
of the Financial Affidavits,
ECF Nos. 85, 90, 99... The
Defendant initially argued
that the Government lacked
standing “to assert any right
on behalf of the public to
access Mr. Avenatti’s sworn
financial statements.” Def.’s
Mem. 7 n.1 (citing United
States v. Hickey, 185 F.3d
1064 (9th Cir. 1999)).
Subsequently, however, the
Court granted leave to Inner
City Press to be heard on the
Defendant’s motion, ECF No.
85, which indisputably does
have standing to assert such
rights." Full order here,
filings due August 10. Watch
this site.
This case is US v. Avenatti, 19-cr-374
(Furman).
***
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