The Daily Beast
REUTERS/Brendan McDermid The head of a women’s wellness company known for promoting “orgasmic meditation” has been sentenced to nine years in prison. Nicole Daedone, the founder and former CEO of OneTaste, was jailed for her role in a forced labor conspiracy, where students and practitioners worked without pay. Rachel Cherwitz, the company’s former head of sales, was also sentenced to 78 months behind bars. They were accused of conspiring to coerce staff members to conduct tasks ranging from menial labor to sexual services for little to no pay. The two women were convicted by a federal jury in June last year. In Monday’s findings, the court also imposed a $12 million forfeiture money judgment against Daedone, and awarded more than $887,000 in restitution to seven victims of both women. Daedone, who sold her stake in OneTaste in 2017 for $12 million, and Cherwitz have been in a Brooklyn jail since their conviction last year. The women have been legally backed by MAGA figures including former Republican Matt Gaetz, who said last week “nobody was forced or restrained or otherwise threatened to continue participating.” Alan Dershowitz, who has been working as a consultant to Daedone’s legal team, claimed that similar charges could be made against religious organisations who made members work unpaid, then claim they were enslaved after quitting. Daedone’s Instagram account remains active while she is in jail, run by her team. Her Instagram bio currently reads “Storyteller. Erotic Artist. Lover. Sicilian. Presently Incarcerated.” Her account includes videos on prison meditation, recipes including prison sushi (made from commissary rice, jalapeño brine and Velveeta cheese) and an AI version of Nicole that claims to be the first artificial intelligence trained in full depth orgasmic meditation. Read it at Wall Street Journal Read more at The Daily Beast.
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