OneTaste Founder Nicole Daedone Sentenced to 9 Years for Forced Labor Conspiracy

The Sentence

Nicole Daedone, 58, co-founder of OneTaste Inc., was sentenced Monday, March 31, 2026, by U.S. District Judge Diane Gujarati in Brooklyn Federal Court to nine years in federal prison on a charge of forced labor conspiracy, according to the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. She was also ordered to forfeit $12 million — the amount she received when she sold her stake in OneTaste in 2017 — and was assessed as owing approximately $890,000 in restitution to seven identified victims.

Rachel Cherwitz, 45, OneTaste's former head of sales and Daedone's co-defendant, was sentenced to six and a half years in prison during the same hearing, according to The Guardian.

Both women were convicted in June 2025 following a roughly one-month trial in Brooklyn Federal Court.

What Prosecutors Said

Joseph Nocella, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said in a statement: "Coercion disguised as wellness or empowerment is still exploitation and it is a crime that causes harm to vulnerable victims."

Prosecutors had sought a 20-year prison term for Daedone. In pre-sentencing filings, they wrote that the scheme "left scores of victims financially, emotionally and psychologically scarred" and that 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," according to NBC News.

During the trial, prosecutors described a yearslong scheme in which Daedone and Cherwitz groomed adherents — many of whom were survivors of prior sexual trauma — into performing sex acts they found uncomfortable or repulsive, including having sex with prospective investors or clients. The two told followers the acts were necessary to attain "freedom" and "enlightenment" and to demonstrate commitment to OneTaste's principles.

What the Defense Said

Daedone's lawyers asked the court for a sentence of approximately two years, calling a longer term "bonkers." They noted she had no prior criminal record and that more than 200 people submitted letters to the court on her behalf. "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 wrote in its sentencing memo, according to NBC News.

Among those submitting letters was Van Jones, a CNN correspondent and former adviser to President Barack Obama, who 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," according to NBC News. Actor Richard Schiff, known for the television series The West Wing, also wrote in support of leniency, calling her someone who "spent her life trying to bring compassion, awareness, and honesty to a part of human experience that is often shamed or misunderstood," NBC News reported.

One of Daedone's defense attorneys described her as a "ceiling-shattering feminist entrepreneur." After sentencing, her legal team said they are focused on appealing her conviction. Prominent attorney Alan Dershowitz has said he will seek a presidential pardon from Donald Trump for both Daedone and Cherwitz, according to The Guardian.

The Judge's Words

Judge Gujarati, in handing down the sentence with more than two dozen Daedone supporters present in the packed courtroom, said Daedone showed no remorse. "What she was doing wasn't about enlightenment or operating in a different dimension," the judge said, according to The New York Times. "It was criminal."

One victim told the judge she had believed in Daedone's "so-called feminist mission" only to be "left with significant financial damages and emotional harm." According to the New York Daily News, the woman told the court: "I was the perfect target."

Background: What Was OneTaste?

Daedone co-founded OneTaste in San Francisco in 2004 as a self-help commune premised on the idea that female orgasms were central to psychological wellness and interpersonal connection. The company's flagship practice was "orgasmic meditation," or "OM," in which men manually stimulated women in a group setting.

OneTaste expanded rapidly during the 2010s, receiving favorable media coverage and opening locations from Los Angeles to London. Daedone sold her stake in 2017 for $12 million — a year before the company's labor and marketing practices came under public scrutiny and regulatory attention.

The company has since been rebranded as the Institute of OM Foundation. Its current owners maintain the work has been misconstrued and that the charges against former executives were unjustified, according to NBC News.

From Jail — Still Broadcasting

The New York Times reported that Daedone has continued advocating her teachings from federal detention. At a dinner in New York last month, an AI avatar trained on Daedone's mannerisms and teachings delivered a roughly 10-minute message to approximately 100 women, many of whom had also spent time incarcerated. The avatar, appearing in front of a background image of jail cells, said: "This is your dispatch from your sisters on the inside," according to the Times.

Daedone's lawyers said she has been teaching meditation to other inmates at the federal detention center in Brooklyn since her conviction last June, according to The Guardian.