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Penn grad Michael Avenatti reportedly arrested for domestic violence days after campus visit







Michael Avenatti was arrested and held in custody following allegations of domestic violence on Wednesday, The Associated Press reported.

According to the AP, after around four hours Avenatti posted $50,000 bail and was released from jail on Wednesday night. Upon exiting jail, the 1996 College graduate delivered an on-camera statement maintaining his innocence.

"I have never struck a woman. I will never strike a woman," Avenatti said.

According to a law enforcement official who spoke to AP on the condition of anonymity, police in Los Angeles responded to a report of domestic violence on Tuesday, and took Avenatti in on Wednesday.

While Avenatti was still in custody, his law office released a statement describing the allegations as "completely bogus."

"I wish to thank the hard working men and woman of the LAPD for their professionalism they were only doing their jobs in light of the completely bogus allegations against me," he said in a statement to BuzzFeed News. "I have never been physically abusive in my life nor was I last night. Any accusations to the contrary are fabricated and meant to do harm to my reputation. I look forward to being fully exonerated.”

The 1996 College graduate was reportedly involved in an altercation with an unidentified woman.

Just days ago, on Nov. 11, Avenatti was on Penn's campus at two different speaker events hosted by the Philomathean Society, Penn Democrats, and the Government and Politics Association.

At the Penn Dems event, which was attended by some 70 students, the firebrand lawyer sounded off on President Trump, addressed the Democratic Party's recent gains in the midterm elections, and referred to himself multiple times as the person best suited to defeat Trump in the 2020 presidential election.

"Had we had any indication before we brought him in that these allegations existed, we would never have had him speak to us," Penn Dems Communications Director and College senior Jack Weisman said on Wednesday evening. "We categorically denounce him and his behavior, just as we denounce all forms of domestic violence and violence against women, and hope that he is held accountable for his horrific actions."

Members of the Philomathean Society had similar remarks.

“The Philomathean Society condemns unequivocally any and all domestic violence," Tea Chair of the Philomathean Society and College senior Omar Khoury said in a written statement. "Such actions are antithetical to our mission as a society.”

On Wednesday afternoon, there were initial reports that the victim was Avenatti's estranged wife, Lisa Storie-Avenatti, but her lawyer released a statement disputing that claim.

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"My client and I have reviewed the TMZ article alleging that my client, Lisa Storie-Avenatti, has been injured and that Michael Avenatti has been arrested as a result of some incident that occurred between them. This article is not true as it pertains to my client," a statement provided to BuzzFeed News said. "Ms. Storie-Avenatti was not subject to any such incident on Tuesday night. Further, she was not at Mr. Avenatti’s apartment on the date that this alleged incident occurred. My client states that there has never been domestic violence in her relationship with Michael and that she has never known Michael to be physically violent toward anyone."

Avenatti has occupied headlines in recent months for his political rivalry with Trump. He the legal representative of Stormy Daniels, an adult film star who had an alleged affair with Trump and is attempting to sue the President. Daniels' suit alleging that Trump was responsible for defamation was dismissed in October by a federal judge, but according to Avenatti, this ruling did not affect Daniels' primary case for the court to annul a non-disclosure agreement that she signed with Trump in 2016.

Avenatti did not respond to calls from The Daily Pennsylvanian.

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