A temporary restraining order against Stormy Daniels’s attorney Michael Avenatti has been extended for two months while the Los Angeles District Attorney decides whether or not to proceed with misdemeanor domestic abuse charge.
Avenatti, who has clashed with President Donald Trump while acting for the porn star, allegedly hit his then girlfriend in the face with a pillow and dragged her across the floor in his Los Angeles apartment in November.
Avenatti’s lawyer, Richard Beada appeared in court in Santa Monica on Wednesday before Judge Susan Lopez-Giss, who extended a temporary restraining order taken out by Avenatti’s ex-girlfriend, Mareli Miniutti, until March 13.
Avenatti told DailyMail.com that this was an ‘agreed upon continuance’ and said he is not aware of any continuing police investigation.
‘My understanding is that the city attorney is making a determination as to whether to proceed with charges or not.’
Avenatti, 47, was arrested in November after a fight with his then girlfriend, 24, at his luxury apartment in Beverly Hills.
Mareli Miniutti’s temporary restraining order against ex Michael Avenatti (pictured in September 2018) has been extended for two months, as police continue to investigate domestic abuse allegations. Avenatti was arrested in November
Miniuitti, an actress who recently had a small role in Oceans 8, moved back to New York after the incident, and her New York-based attorney, Michael Bachner, took part in Wednesday’s hearing via telephone.
Avenatti’s case has been referred to the City Attorney to consider misdemeanor charges, after the District Attorney declined to prosecute him for felony domestic violence.
Speaking after he was released from a Los Angeles Police station, Avenatti called the claims ‘bogus’ and said he would be ‘fully exonerated’.
‘I look forward to a full clearing of my name and disclosure of all of the facts. I have never abused a woman or committed domestic violence against anyone,’ the attorney later tweeted.
‘Any claim to the contrary is completely bogus and fabricated. I am a target. And I will be exonerated.’
In court documents, Miniutti alleged Avenatti dragged her across his apartment floor, called her an ‘Ungrateful f**king bitch,’ and hit her in the face with pillows from the bed during an argument about money.
She claimed Avenatti told her ‘Do not disrespect me. You don’t get to sleep in my house tonight,’ grabbed her right wrist and ‘attempted to pull me out of bed.’
The actress, who had been living with Avenatti since January, said she tried texting a friend for help but the attorney grabbed her phone. Miniutti claims Avenatti dragged her into the apartment block hallway while she was in her underwear, but pulled her back into the apartment when she began ringing a neighbor’s doorbell.
Miniutti, an Estonian-born actress, 24, alleged Avenatti dragged her across his apartment and called her an ‘Ungrateful f**king b**ch’ during a physical altercation at his LA home
Miniutti submitted photos of her alleged injuries as evidence. She claims she suffered injuries after Avenatti yanked her by the wrist to pull her out of bed before dragging her across the floor
According to the actress, this is not the first time her boyfriend had been violent.
She claimed that in February, Avenatti ‘had been drinking, and became angry at me’, then shoved her out of his apartment causing her to hit her head, and threw her shoes at her.
Miniutti claimed Avenatti was financially controlling, and had ‘made promises to ‘take care of me’ while being ‘vehemently opposed to my desire to earn a living outside of Hollywood.’
The actress says she is afraid of her ex, and was granted a temporary restraining order against him in November.
Although Miniutti said she had been dating Avenatti since January last year, the Estonian-born actress is still married to her estranged husband, Michael Miniutti.
When asked in November about Miniutti’s claims that she was assaulted by Avenatti, her husband, a Programme Director at Mansion House Consulting based in New York City, told DailyMail.com: ‘No man has a right to raise a hand to a woman. Period.’
Although Miniutti said she had been dating Avenatti since January last year, the Estonian-born actress is still married to her estranged husband, Michael Miniutti
Miniutti’s allegations are widely thought to have killed any hopes of a 2020 presidential bid by the lawyer, who had been canvassing support and heavily hinting at a run against Trump next year.
Miniutti’s New York based attorney, Michael Bachner, said that he was not surprised that the LA DA declined felony charges, but said he expected Avenatti to face a misdemeanor charge.
‘Given the nature of Ms. Miniutti’s injuries, we are not surprised by the decision not to bring felony charges,’ Bachner told CNN. ‘However, we are confident that misdemeanor charges are warranted.’