NEW YORK (AP) — The leader of a sex-focused women’s wellness company that promoted “orgasmic meditation” was sentenced Monday to nine years in federal prison on forced labor charges, federal prosecutors said.
Nicole Daedone, co-founder of OneTaste Inc., was also ordered to forfeit $12 million during the hearing in Brooklyn. That was the amount she sold the California-based company for, according to John Marzulli, spokesperson for the Office of U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
Prosecutors had sought a 20-year prison term for Daedone, arguing in presentencing court filings that her scheme left “scores of victims financially, emotionally and psychologically scarred.”
“Daedone and her co-conspirators exercised control through economic pressure, psychological manipulation, physical exhaustion and emotional degradation, leaving behind a trail of financial ruin and lasting trauma,” prosecutors wrote.
Her lawyers argued that imposing a lengthy imprisonment would be “bonkers” as they sought a term of around two years for Daedone.
They noted that the New York resident had no prior criminal record and that more than 200 people had submitted letters to the court “attesting to her character, her generosity, and her positive influence.”
“She has lived an uncommon and impactful life, and she is deeply respected by people from all walks of life, including many entirely unconnected to OneTaste,” the defense lawyers wrote in their sentencing memo. “She is a prolific writer, teacher, and spiritual practitioner whose work has long focused on reducing suffering and fostering meaningful human connection.”
Among those who penned letters of support was Van Jones, a CNN correspondent and former adviser to President Barack Obama.
The longtime criminal justice reform advocate described Daedone as “a woman of uncommon wisdom, grace and moral courage” who has “dedicated her life to helping others find healing, empowerment and a deeper sense of human connection.”
Actor Richard Schiff, of the television series “The West Wing,” wrote that Daedone was deserving of the court’s leniency because she has “spent her life trying to bring compassion, awareness, and honesty to a part of human experience that is often shamed or misunderstood.”
Daedone’s lawyers didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment after the sentencing. Rachel Cherwitz, the company’s former sales director, was set to be sentenced later Monday.
During the roughly one-month trial, prosecutors said the two women ran a yearslong scheme that groomed adherents — many of them victims of sexual trauma — to do their bidding.
They said Daedone and Cherwitz, of California, used economic, sexual and psychological abuse, intimidation and indoctrination to force OneTaste members into sexual acts they found uncomfortable or repulsive, such as having sex with prospective investors or clients.
The two told followers the questionable acts were necessary in order to obtain “freedom” and “enlightenment,” and to demonstrate their commitment to the company’s principles.
One of Daedone’s lawyers, meanwhile, cast her as a “ceiling-shattering feminist entrepreneur” who created a unique business centered on women’s sexuality and empowerment.
Daedone co-founded OneTaste in San Francisco in 2004 as a sort of self-help commune that viewed female orgasms as key to sexual and psychological wellness and interpersonal connection.
A centerpiece was “orgasmic meditation,” or “OM,” which was carried out by men manually stimulating women in a group setting.
The company enjoyed glowing media coverage in the 2010s as a cutting-edge enterprise that prioritized women’s sexual pleasure, and quickly opened outposts from Los Angeles to London.
Daedone sold her stake in the company in 2017 for $12 million — a year before OneTaste’s marketing and labor practices came under scrutiny.
The company’s current owners have since rebranded it as the Institute of OM Foundation. They maintain its work has been misconstrued and that the charges against its former executives were unjustified.
