Adult film actress Stormy Daniels says she’ll “reserve judgment” until the domestic-violence allegations against her current attorney, Michael Avenatti, are sorted. “But if the allegations turn out to be true then I will definitely be seeking new representation because I cannot condone or support someone who is abusive,” Daniels stated during a recent speech at Oxford University.
The ubiquitous attorney, who has championed Daniels’ hush-money case against President Trump in the courts and media, was arrested last week on charges of domestic violence, though he has denied the allegations, stating, “I have never struck a woman. I never will strike a woman.”
According to an LAPD spokesman, the alleged victim—who has since been identified as Mareli Miniutti, a 24-year-old bit-part actress who appeared in Ocean’s 8—had “visible injuries”; Miniutti, meanwhile, claimed that Avenatti, 47, violently “dragged her” across his apartment and repeatedly called her an “ungrateful bitch.” She was initially granted a temporary restraining order, with a court date set for December 10, but yesterday the Los Angeles district attorney’s office declined to file felony assault charges against Avenatti, instead referring the case to the city attorney’s office as a misdemeanor.
ADVERTISEMENT
And, while Daniels says she’s reserving judgment on Avenatti, that may be due to her own experience with an assault charge.
Daniels was arrested on July 25, 2009, after a dispute with her then-husband of two years, Michael “Moz” Mosny, who’s worked various odd jobs in the adult industry, at their home in Tampa, Florida.
The arrest report, compiled by Officer Steven A. Smith of the Tampa Police Department, stated that Daniels and Mosny had a “verbal argument” that supposedly became physical, with Daniels “hitting the victim several times in the head with her hand”—although Mosny did not have any visible injuries. Daniels also had no injuries but, unlike the “calm and very friendly” Mosny, appeared “very angry.” The officers also observed a house in disarray, with a “broken plate” on the floor, a plant on the window sill “without any flower pot,” two candles on the living room floor and “broken shades.” Mosny composed a sworn statement at the scene while Daniels refused, telling police, “my lawyer told me never sign any papers.”
Mosny’s sworn statement taken by police at the scene, and included in the arrest report, claimed that Daniels had become upset over the way his father had done the laundry earlier during a visit to the house, as well as “some bills that had not been paid.” He then alleged that Daniels “threw a potted plant at the kitchen sink,” then “hit [Mosny] on his head with her hands several times.” Mosny said he just “stood there” before walking over to the living room, at which point Daniels entered and “threw their wedding album onto the floor and knocked candles off the coffee table, breaking them.”
Stormy Daniels and her attorney, Michael Avenatti, address the media on April 16, 2018, in New York City.
Drew Angerer/GettyDaniels, meanwhile, told police officers that she indeed “got upset because the way the laundry had been done” as well as over an unpaid bill. She claimed that she “threw the potted plant at the sink” and may have accidentally “struck” Mosny while trying to reclaim the car keys from him, claiming “he may have been struck by her hand while she was trying to get the keys he was holding over his head.” She did cop to subsequently following Mosny into the living room, throwing their wedding album on the floor, and knocking the candles off the coffee table.
The adult actress, who was in the midst of exploring a Senate run against Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) at the time, was booked on a charge of simple battery, a misdemeanor; the Hillsborough County Clerk’s Office, however, told The Daily Beast that there was a “notice of termination of prosecution” on Aug. 18, 2009, though the final judgment provided no details as to why the charge was dismissed. (Neither Daniels nor Mosny responded to multiple requests for comment for this story.)
In addition to the domestic abuse allegation, fellow porn actress Tasha Reign accused Daniels of attempting to silence her after she was assaulted by a crew member on the set of an adult film Daniels was directing in November 2017. “I was sexually assaulted by one of her crewmembers. He groped and grabbed me from behind... And she did not handle the situation appropriately, respectfully, or professionally,” Reign told The Daily Beast. After the alleged incident, Reign has seen many in the adult industry turn on her for daring to speak out against a porn legend and #Resistance hero.
As for the Avenatti case, Daniels told the media: “I will say that right now they are just allegations and I am going to reserve judgment, and I hope that everyone does—trust me, I know what it feels like to be on the other end of that—until all the details are discovered.”
