Stephanie Clifford
FILE - In this July 23, 2019, file photo, California attorney Michael Avenatti walks from a courthouse in New York, after facing charges. On Wednesday, June 9, 2021, Avenatti's lawyers said he should spend no more than six months behind bars after a jury concluded he tried to extort $25 million from Nike. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle, File)
Lawyers: Avenatti shamed, merits leniency for Nike extortion

By Larry Neumeister Jun. 10, 2021 12:29 AM EDT

Ron Nixon poses for a photo in the Washington bureau of The Associated Press in 2018. Nixon, The AP's global investigations editor, has won the first-ever News Leader of the Year award from the News Leaders Association. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
AP's Nixon wins News Leader of the Year award from NLA

Apr. 05, 2021 04:00 PM EDT

FILE - In this Oct. 11, 2018, file photo, adult film actress Stormy Daniels attends the opening of the adult entertainment fair "Venus," in Berlin. When Donald Trump left the White House in January 2021, he remained "Individual-1" in the federal campaign finance crimes case against his former attorney, Michael Cohen. The prosecution stemmed from six-figure payments Cohen arranged to Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal, to keep them quiet during the campaign about alleged affairs with Trump. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, File)
Stormy Daniels and Michael Cohen, once foes, talk Trump

By Jim Mustian Feb. 08, 2021 01:00 AM EST

FILE - In this Dec. 17, 2019, file photo, attorney Michael Avenatti arrives at federal court in New York. A judge has set an April 2021 date for Avenatti to face trial on charges that he cheated ex-client Stormy Daniels out of proceeds from her book, "Full Disclosure." Avenatti, who wrote the forward for the book, has pleaded not guilty. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)
April trial scheduled for Avenatti over Stormy Daniels book

Nov. 10, 2020 06:57 PM EST

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump hold hands on stage after the first presidential debate at Case Western University and Cleveland Clinic, in Cleveland, Ohio, Sept. 29, 2020. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)
First lady lashes out at media about friend's tell-all book

By Darlene Superville Oct. 16, 2020 01:57 PM EDT

FILE - This July 24, 2020, file photo shows Michael Cohen, center, President Donald Trump's former personal attorney, returning to his apartment, in New York, after being released from prison. So-called Son of Sam laws won't keep Cohen from profiting from any part of his book, "Disloyal: The True Story of the Former Personal Attorney to President Donald J. Trump," legal experts told The Associated Press, even if his memoir amounted to a how-to manual for tax evasion and campaign finance violations. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)
Cohen memoir casts him as 'star witness' against Trump

By Jim Mustian And Michael R. Sisak Sep. 06, 2020 02:30 AM EDT

FILE - In this March 6, 2019 file photo, Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's former lawyer, returns to testify on Capitol Hill in Washington. Michael Cohen's tell-all memoir makes the case that President Donald Trump is “guilty of the same crimes” that landed his former fixer in federal prison, offering a blow-by-blow account of Trump's alleged role in a hush money scandal that once overshadowed his presidency. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
Cohen memoir casts him as 'star witness' against Trump

By Jim Mustian And Michael R. Sisak Sep. 05, 2020 09:17 PM EDT

First lady Melania Trump speaks on the second day of the Republican National Convention from the Rose Garden of the White House, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Melania Trump tells virus sufferers they're 'not alone'

By Darlene Superville Aug. 25, 2020 01:09 AM EDT

FILE- In this Dec. 12, 2018 file photo, President Donald Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen, leaves federal court in New York after being sentenced to three years in prison. Cohen was furloughed from prison in May 2020 as authorities tried to slow the spread of the coronavirus in federal prisons, but was returned to prison because he refused to sign an agreement over terms of his home confinement, not because he planned to publish a book critical of Trump, prosecutors said Wednesday, July 22, 2020. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle, File)
US government drops effort to silence Trump's ex-lawyer

By Larry Neumeister Jul. 30, 2020 01:56 PM EDT

FILE- In this Dec. 12, 2018 file photo, President Donald Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen, leaves federal court in New York after being sentenced to three years in prison. Cohen was furloughed from prison in May 2020 as authorities tried to slow the spread of the coronavirus in federal prisons, but was returned to prison because he refused to sign an agreement over terms of his home confinement, not because he planned to publish a book critical of Trump, prosecutors said Wednesday, July 22, 2020. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle, File)
Judge orders Michael Cohen to be released from prison

By Larry Neumeister Jul. 23, 2020 12:16 PM EDT

FILE - In this March 6, 2019 file photo, Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's former lawyer, returns to testify on Capitol Hill in Washington. President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer has sued Attorney General William Barr and the Bureau of Prisons director, saying he's being unjustly held behind bars to stop him from finishing a book that criticizes Trump. The lawsuit on behalf of Michael Cohen was filed late Monday, July 20, 2020 in Manhattan federal court, (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
Government defends imprisoning ex-Trump lawyer Michael Cohen

By Larry Neumeister Jul. 22, 2020 05:42 PM EDT

Members of the media set up outside the Supreme Court, Thursday, July 9, 2020, in Washington. The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the Manhattan district attorney can obtain Trump tax returns while not allowing Congress to get Trump tax and financial records, for now, returning the case to lower courts. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
A look at the cases behind the Supreme Court rulings

By The Associated Press Jul. 11, 2020 12:17 AM EDT

Members of the media set up outside the Supreme Court, Thursday, July 9, 2020, in Washington. The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the Manhattan district attorney can obtain Trump tax returns while not allowing Congress to get Trump tax and financial records, for now, returning the case to lower courts. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
A look at the cases behind the Supreme Court rulings

By The Associated Press Jul. 10, 2020 10:53 AM EDT

Geoffrey S. Berman, United States attorney for the Southern District of New York, arrives to his office in New York on Saturday, June 20, 2020. The Justice Department moved abruptly Friday night to oust Berman, the U.S. attorney in Manhattan overseeing key prosecutions of President Donald Trump’s allies and an investigation of his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani. But Berman said he was refusing to leave his post and his ongoing investigations would continue. (AP Photo/Kevin Hagen)
Top Manhattan prosecutor leaves job after standoff with Barr

By Michael Balsamo And Larry Neumeister Jun. 20, 2020 01:53 PM EDT

Michael Cohen arrives at his Manhattan apartment, Thursday, May 21, 2020, in New York. President Donald Trump's longtime personal lawyer and fixer was released federal prison Thursday and is expected to serve the remainder of his sentence at home. Cohen has been serving a federal prison sentence at FCI Otisville in New York after pleading guilty to numerous charges, including campaign finance fraud and lying to Congress. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Ex-Trump lawyer Michael Cohen released from US prison

By Michael Balsamo And Jim Mustian May. 21, 2020 10:35 AM EDT

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., walks to the podium during a news conference on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, May 20, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Pelosi: 'Morbidly obese' was taste of Trump's 'own medicine'

By Laurie Kellman May. 20, 2020 04:47 PM EDT

FILE - In this Nov. 2, 2017, file photo, Paul Manafort, President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman, leaves Federal District Court, in Washington. Manafort has been released from federal prison to serve the rest of his sentence in home confinement over concerns about the coronavirus, his lawyer said Wednesday. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)
Paul Manafort released from prison due to virus concerns

By Michael Balsamo May. 13, 2020 09:00 AM EDT

FILE - In this May 6, 2019, file photo, Michael Cohen, former attorney to President Donald Trump, leaves his apartment building before beginning his prison term in New York. President Trump’s former lawyer and longtime fixer Cohen will be released from federal prison to serve the remainder of his sentence in home confinement amid the coronavirus pandemic, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. (AP Photo/Kevin Hagen, File)
Ex-Trump lawyer Cohen to serve out prison sentence at home

By Michael Balsamo Apr. 17, 2020 12:27 AM EDT

FILE - In this May 6, 2019, file photo, Michael Cohen, former attorney to President Donald Trump, leaves his apartment building before beginning his prison term in New York. President Trump’s former lawyer and longtime fixer Cohen will be released from federal prison to serve the remainder of his sentence in home confinement amid the coronavirus pandemic, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. (AP Photo/Kevin Hagen, File)
AP source: Ex-Trump lawyer Cohen being released from prison

By Michael Balsamo Apr. 16, 2020 11:10 PM EDT

FILE - In this Dec. 17, 2019, file photo, California attorney Michael Avenatti arrives at federal court to enter a plea to an indictment charging him with trying to extort up to $25 million from Nike in New York. A judge has allowed Avenatti to be temporarily freed from a federal jail in New York City and to ride out the coronavirus scare at a friend's house in Los Angeles. On Friday, April 10, 2020, U.S. District Judge James Selna said Avenatti may stay at the home of Jay Mannheimer, near Venice Beach, during the 90-day release period but he first must get tested for COVID-19 and be quarantined for 14 days at a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)
Judge releases Michael Avenatti from jail over virus threat

Associated Press Apr. 11, 2020 03:00 PM EDT