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U.S. NEWS Friday 7 december 2018

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Avenatti agrees to give up

assets to estranged wife

By AMANDA LEE MYERS 2017 Ferrari GT Spider, five attorney, who has been a
Associated Press watches including a Rolex scathing Trump critic.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Mi- that retails for $12,000, a Avenatti was arrested on
chael Avenatti has agreed sculpture by famed archi- Nov. 14 on a felony do-
to turn over to his estranged tect Frank Gehry and a six- mestic violence charge
wife a corporate jet, Ferrari seat business jet worth mil- stemming from allegations
and other assets as part of lions. he roughed up a girlfriend.
their divorce settlement. Avenatti stressed that de- Prosecutors declined
Orange County Judge velopment was an agreed- to bring felony charges
Carol Henson on Tuesday upon deal as part of his di- against him in the case, but
accepted the agreement vorce proceedings. He said they are still investigating
stipulating that some of Av- he and his ex-wife came to whether he should face a
enatti's assets be liquidated an agreement, known as a misdemeanor charge. Av-
and sold for back child and stipulation, in which certain enatti has vehemently de-
spousal support. He also assets would be transferred nied wrongdoing.
must pay at least $80,000 to her and she would sell On Monday, Trump's at-
to Lisa Storie-Avenatti by them. The court then ap- torneys asked a judge for
Jan. 2. proved the deal. nearly $800,000 in attor-
Avenatti, who represents "This was done by way of neys' fees and penalties Michael Avenatti, lawyer for porn actress Stormy Daniels, speaks
porn star Stormy Dan- a negotiated consensual from Daniels for her failed to reporters outside federal court in Los Angeles Monday, Dec.
iels in her lawsuit against agreement. I wasn't or- defamation lawsuit, which 3, 2018.
President Donald Trump, dered to do anything," he was filed by Avenatti. Dan- Associated Press
previously agreed to pay said. iels has appealed the deci-
Storie-Avenatti more than The 47-year-old Avenatti sion tossing the lawsuit, and made the decision not to Daniels has said she had an
$150,000 a month in child announced Tuesday that Avenatti has said he ex- run for president in 2020 at affair with President Don-
and spousal support. he's not running for presi- pects to prevail at a higher the urging of his family, and ald Trump in 2006, a claim
Among the assets Av- dent following a couple court. if not for their concerns, he Trump denies.q
enatti is turning over are a tumultuous weeks for the Avenatti tweeted that he would go for it.
California first state to mandate solar power for new homes

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Cali- tion of fossil fuels." savings from adding solar
fornia became the first While nobody spoke power will be around $40
state in the nation to require Wednesday in opposition, a month or nearly $500 a
homes built in 2020 and the commission received year.
later be solar powered, fol- about 300 letters oppos- "These standards won't nec-
lowing a vote by the Build- ing the mandate because essarily make homes more
ing Standards Commission. of the added cost, the Or- expensive to buy. What
The unanimous action on ange County Register re- they will do is save money
Wednesday finalizes a pre- ported. on utility costs," said Pierre
vious vote by the Energy Energy officials estimat- Delforge, a senior scientist
Commission and fulfills a ed the provisions will add with the Natural Resources
decade-old goal to make $10,000 to the cost of build- Defense Council. "This is not
the state reliant on cleaner ing a single-family home — only the right thing to do for
energy. about $8,400 from adding In this photo file taken Monday, May 7, 2018, solar panels are the climate, it is financially
"These provisions really are solar and about $1,500 for seen on the rooftop on a home in a new housing project in Sac- smart."
historic and will be a bea- making homes more ener- ramento, Calif. Homebuilders have been
con of light for the rest of gy-efficient. But those costs preparing for years to meet
the country," said Kent Sa- would be offset by lower rebuild. But supporters as- signing a power purchase a proposed requirement
saki, a structural engineer utility bills over the 30-year sured him that won't be a agreement that pays for that all new homes be "net-
and one of six building lifespan of the solar panels, problem, according to the the electricity without buy- zero," meaning they would
standards commissioners. officials said. newspaper. ing the panels, said Drew produce enough solar
"(It's) the beginning of sub- One commission mem- Homeowners will have two Bohan, executive director power to offset all electric-
stantial improvement in ber worried the mandate options that eliminate up- of the energy commission. ity and natural gas con-
how we produce energy would make it harder for front costs of adding solar: One solar-industry rep- sumed over the course of a
and reduce the consump- California wildfire victims to leasing the solar panels or resentative said the net year.q