“Creepy porn lawyer” Michael Avenatti issued a statement Wednesday night in response to news of his arrest on domestic violence charges.
Avenatti in the statement denied any and all allegations against him, calling them “fabricated and meant to do harm to my reputation.”
“I have never been physically abusive in my life nor was I last night,” the statement reads. “Any accusations to the contrary are fabricated and meant to do harm to my reputation.”
“I look forward to being fully exonerated,” he concludes.
He also thanked the Los Angeles Police Department “for their professionalism,” saying, “they were only doing their jobs” when they arrested him.
Avenatti, outspoken Trump critic, 2020 presidential hopeful, and lawyer to adult film star Stormy Daniels, was arrested Wednesday evening, TMZ first reported.
He was formally charged with felony domestic violence, stemming from an alleged incident on Tuesday. His bail was set at $50,000.
LAPD confirmed the arrest and charge on Twitter:
According to TMZ,
Our law enforcement sources say Avenatti was arrested Wednesday after a woman filed a felony DV report. We're told her face was ‘swollen and bruised’ with ‘red marks’ on both cheeks.
Our sources say the alleged incident occurred Tuesday night, but there was another confrontation Wednesday between the two at an exclusive apartment building in the Century City area of L.A.
…
A law enforcement source says on Tuesday, Avenatti ‘kicked her out of the apartment’ and that's when the alleged domestic violence occurred. We're told she went back to the apartment on Wednesday to retrieve her belongings and called police to stand by in case things got heated.
Avenatti was bailed out Wednesday night. He held a press conference after he was released, where he again said that he has never physically assaulted a woman before:
"I have never struck a woman. I never will strike a woman,” said Avenatti. “I have been an advocate for women’s rights my entire career and I’m going to continue to be an advocate. I am not going to be intimidated from stopping what I am doing."
According to TMZ, “the LAPD has already obtained an emergency protective order, prohibiting Avenatti from going near the alleged victim.”
The documents were reportedly served to Avenatti before he was released from custody.