How a company likened to a sex cult is lobbying Trump for pardons

A institution successful San Francisco that prosecutors likened to a enactment cult has embarked connected a run to tribunal allies of President Trump arsenic it seeks pardons for its 2 convicted leaders, CBS News has learned done interviews and records.

OneTaste, a self-described "orgasmic meditation" company, is connected the hunt for clemency for its erstwhile CEO and laminitis Nicole Daedone and erstwhile caput of income Rachel Cherwitz. In precocious March, a national justice sentenced the 2 women to situation — 9 years for Daedone and implicit six for Cherwitz — aft their conviction successful 2025 for forced labour conspiracy.

OneTaste has taken the accepted measurement of submitting pardon applications to the Justice Department for Daedone and Cherwitz, according to national records. 

But it is besides adopting immoderate of the elaborate back-channel protocols of a new, less-formal pardon process during Mr. Trump's 2nd term. The undertaking involves efforts to triumph enactment from allies of the president by approaching attorneys, governmental operatives, media figures, and others successful his orbit — each part of a playbook utilized by others to onshore clemency since past January.

Nicole Daedone, laminitis and erstwhile CEO of OneTaste, halfway left, and Rachel Cherwitz, erstwhile caput of income for OneTaste, exit national tribunal successful the Brooklyn borough of New York, connected May 6, 2025.  Yuki Iwamura / Bloomberg via Getty Images

Rachel Barkow, a instrumentality prof astatine New York University and adept connected enforcement clemency, said OneTaste's efforts to marque outreach to MAGA allies and influencers shows however pardon-seekers progressively navigate informal channels to get the president's attention. 

"It's of a magnitude that I've ne'er seen before," Barkow told CBS News. "We don't look to person a functioning clemency process for everyone other who doesn't person these connections."

Daedone and Cherwitz, according to prosecutors, were down an abusive strategy to coerce their unit into performing traumatic and demeaning tasks — including intersexual acts — for small to nary pay. Attorneys for the defendants argued that they led a women's empowerment concern and that OneTaste members could person near the radical astatine immoderate time. They person filed for appeal.

Helping backmost this pardon effort is well-known defence lawyer Alan Dershowitz, who utilized his entree to Mr. Trump during his archetypal word to power respective acts of clemency. He said successful an interrogation with CBS News that helium believes the "indictment is truthful wide that it truly endangers spiritual practices and spiritual freedom."

During his 2nd term, Mr. Trump has granted clemency to assorted allies who faced prosecution, arsenic good arsenic convicts who hired radical successful his orbit who helped broker the pardons oregon commutations. 

White House property caput Karoline Leavitt has said that anyone "spending wealth to lobby for pardons is foolishly wasting their money" and that the medication has a "robust pardon reappraisal process, which includes White House counsel, the Department of Justice and yet the president himself arsenic the last decider."

OneTaste paid Dershowitz to counsel connected its ineligible appeal, helium said, adding that helium has since helped the institution pro bono due to the fact that helium supports its cause. 

According to a root acquainted with the outreach, OneTaste has besides courted Matt Gaetz, the erstwhile Republican Florida congressman who faced a national enactment trafficking investigation, which did not effect successful immoderate charges against him. Gaetz hosted a segment astir the lawsuit connected his One America News show, remarking that "nobody was forced oregon restrained oregon different threatened to proceed participating" successful OneTaste events. Gaetz did not respond to requests for comment. 

Another Trump state who OneTaste sought successful its efforts was governmental advisor Roger Stone, who talked astir the lawsuit connected his podcast. Stone told CBS News that helium believes the Daedone and Cherwitz condemnation "really raises superior law issues." 

OneTaste besides approached Steve Bannon and MAGA influencer Laura Loomer, sources adjacent to OneTaste told CBS News. Bannon declined to remark astir OneTaste. Loomer said she does not enactment connected pardons and doesn't callback the outreach. "I get truthful galore calls," Loomer told CBS News.

And to combat the case, OneTaste antecedently enlisted different MAGA-connected attorney, Adam Katz. He told CBS News that helium sent a missive to the Justice Department pre-conviction that asked for a reappraisal of the prosecution. Katz has worked connected respective pardon cases during Mr. Trump's 2nd term, and helium represented Rudy Giuliani successful a defamation case implicit his efforts to overturn Mr. Trump's nonaccomplishment successful the 2020 election.

Anjuli Ayer, present the CEO of OneTaste, said that Daedone and Cherwitz person garnered enactment due to the fact that of the prosecution's "injustice."

"You inquire wherefore truthful galore radical could spot this and advocator for it," Ayer told CBS News. "Not for money, but for the simple, plain information that there's a justness contented here."

"Access to radical successful influential places" 

OneTaste has taken different steps to curry favour with Republicans successful Washington. 

A erstwhile worker for the company, Marcus Ratnathicam, reached retired connected societal media earlier Trump took bureau to Mike Howell — a adjacent state of Ed Martin, present the U.S. pardon attorney. Since then, Howell, who runs a nonprofit called the Oversight Project that investigates alleged authorities weaponization, has go a nationalist advocator for Daedone and Cherwitz. His radical published a report successful January that highlighted the case.

Ratnathicam has besides briefed members of Congress connected the House Judiciary Committee — led by Republican Ohio Congressman Jim Jordan — astir the OneTaste case, according to sources acquainted with the matter. He has besides discussed the lawsuit with the libertarian Cato Institute deliberation vessel and American Civil Liberties Union, the sources said. Ratnathicam declined to beryllium interviewed.

Howell told CBS News that the Justice Department and Mr. Trump should "take corrective steps" to reappraisal the OneTaste lawsuit to guarantee the convictions don't acceptable a precedent for much groups being targeted successful the future. OneTaste and its allies person argued that members participated with the institution voluntarily and consented to intersexual activities.

Neither OneTaste, nor Ratnathicam donated to his nonprofit, Howell said, adding that helium does not stock donor records and "wouldn't crook implicit backstage accusation from radical successful the government's crosshairs."

OneTaste has besides recovered an state successful Cynthia Hughes, a adjacent person of Martin, who plays a cardinal relation successful reviewing clemency decisions. 

Hughes runs a nonprofit called Patriot Freedom Project, which argues that the OneTaste lawsuit was politically motivated. Martin served connected the committee of directors of her radical and collected a stipend from it, according to his authorities fiscal disclosure.

In a blog station connected its website, Patriot Freedom Project's "Weaponization Watch" inaugural says the OneTaste lawsuit "is weaponization of authorities and conservatives admit that this benignant of ineligible mentation volition travel for them next." The post, which claims that Daedone and Cherwitz were targeted "for moving a palmy intersexual wellness concern based connected voluntary association," besides includes quotes from Dershowitz and Stone discussing the case.

Hughes' radical besides posted a video connected YouTube successful January of Ayer, OneTaste's now-CEO, talking astir the prosecution — portion giving a motion to MAGA. "We took the president's mantra, 'fight, fight, fight,' and we followed it," Ayer said. "But it was not capable to deter these prosecutors."

Hughes has past with the pardon process — she advocated for Jan. 6 defendants earlier Mr. Trump's pardons oregon commutations for radical charged oregon convicted for their relation successful the Capitol riot successful 2021. 

Her enactment besides took credit for helping to unafraid Mr. Trump's pardon past twelvemonth of Michael McMahon, a erstwhile constabulary serviceman convicted of acting arsenic an amerciable overseas cause and stalking. Martha Byrne, an histrion and the woman of McMahon, told CBS News that she was introduced to Martin astatine an lawsuit hosted by Hughes astatine Trump National Golf Club successful Bedminster, New Jersey. 

"Cynthia has been an astonishing protagonist and friend," Byrne said. "I champion her work."

Since past year, Hughes has attended astatine slightest 7 meetings astatine the pardon bureau with Martin and different officials, according to visitant logs reviewed by CBS News. Ayer and Ratnathicam were astatine 2 of those meetings, successful January and February 2026, the records show. 

A spokesperson for OneTaste told CBS News that the institution has not paid Hughes oregon donated to Patriot Freedom Project. 

Regardless, OneTaste insiders said they are encouraged that Hughes has taken up Daedone and Cherwitz's origin due to the fact that of her adjacent proximity to the pardon attorney. 

"It is wide known that Cynthia has entree to radical successful influential places, and it's nary agelong that anyone who tin unfastened doors is idiosyncratic worthy having arsenic an ally," a root adjacent to OneTaste told CBS News.

Hughes did not respond to requests for comment. 

A Trump medication authoritative said that, portion the president is the eventual decider connected pardons, Martin is viewed by immoderate "with wants" similar Hughes successful the MAGA basal "as their champion chance" astatine securing immoderate pardons. The authoritative spoke connected the information of anonymity due to the fact that they were not authorized to bash truthful publicly.

A spokesperson for the Justice Department declined to comment, referring CBS News to Martin straight — who besides did not reply a database of emailed questions.