Kearny Pain Doc Sentenced for ‘Pill Mill’ Sales and Arson Plot

A Kearny doctor who sold pain pills to Philadelphia street dealer – then tried to hire that man to torch his office building – has been sentenced to 5 1/2 years for both crimes.

Mudassar Sharif has been in jail since his in February of 2015. He’ll get credit for that time served.

He escaped any major fine in his sentencing in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia but the government seized $3,042 in cash that was in the center console of his Honda Pilot on the day of his arrest.

Last week’s federal sentencing brings to a close an unlikely tale of a doctor who drove from his Basking Ridge home to Philadelphia in 2012 to sell a pit bull to a customer he found on Craigslist. He ended up making monthly runs to sell the man both oxycodone pills and oxycodone prescriptions written in fabricated names.

Eventually he proposed hiring the man to burn down his Kearny office building, which housed other tenants as well as his own practice. In exchange, the doctor promised to pay the man in pills.

The plot was never executed, as Sharif was arrested shortly after that conversation. According to authorities, Sharif sought the destruction of patient records because he was having a billing dispute with Medicaid or Medicare.

“Dr. Sharif was extremely remorseful for what his conduct did to his family and his profession. His family is hopeful that he will some day be able to repay his debt to society by returning to be a leader in his community as he once was,” said his attorney Michael J. Diamondstein, after the sentencing.

He described his client as being extremely apologetic at his sentencing, and accepting responsibility for his actions.

Sharif pleaded guilty to one count of Attempted Malicious Damage by Means of Fire, and two counts of Distribution of Controlled Substances.

Friends and relatives wrote poignant letters to U.S. District Court Judge Joel H. Slomsky, begging for mercy for a man they said was a devoted father and caring physician. His wife said she and their two children were being evicted because she couldn’t afford the rent on her own.

“They lost their dad, now their home and community, and they can’t make sense out of anything,” wrote Sidneia Marques Sharif, a nurse who met her future husband when they worked along side each other in a hospital emergency room.

The sentence recommends Sharif participate in a residential drug and alcohol treatment program, which if completed, could reduce his sentence by a year, Diamonsten said.

“There is no indication he was using drugs,” Diamondstein added.

The sentence also requires Sharif to refrain from any gambling.

Sharif’s license to practice medicine was revoked for five years by the New Jersey Board of Medical Examiners this past May.

 

Notable Cases

Pretrial Intervention Program That Accepted Ray Rice Is Rarely Granted

We were concerned that Mr. Rice would be treated more harshly because of his celebrity status. We are thankful that he was not. We are thankful that he was given the same treatment as anyone else in a similar situation.

- Michael J. Diamondstein
Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice will be allowed to enter a program to avoid prosecution in an alleged assault of his now-wife. Upon successful completion of the program — which will be a minimum of one year — the third-degree charge of aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury would be dismissed. The arrest would remain on his record, but with no conviction.
Pretrial Intervention Program That Accepted Ray Rice Is Rarely Granted
Notable Cases

Pennsylvania and Maryland Prosecutors Drop Child Sex Abuse Cases After Diamondstein Cross Examination

“Michael Diamondstein is the best lawyer on Earth. He saved my life.”

- DT
DT had spent three years in jail and was facing lifetimes more for multiple counts of child rape in Pennsylvania and Maryland. But Michael Diamondstein’s thorough investigation and strategic cross-examination forced prosecutors to withdraw their case mid-jury trial.
Pennsylvania and Maryland Prosecutors Drop Child Sex Abuse Cases After Diamondstein Cross Examination
Notable Cases

Life Sentence Vacated After Decades in Prison

“The district attorney recognized the inequities in the case and we are thankful for the compassion and justice they decided was appropriate.”

- Michael Diamondstein
Mark Young had been serving a life sentence for what prosecutors say was his role as a coconspirator in a 1974 bar robbery that ended in the shooting death of a patron. The 67-year-old Young, who maintained his innocence for almost 50 years, is now slated to be released from prison after a negotiated guilty plea. The judge vacated Young’s previous conviction and sentence.
Life Sentence Vacated After Decades in Prison
Notable Cases

Michael J. Diamondstein Secures Client’s Release from Pennsylvania Prison after 37 Years

He took his first free breaths this afternoon after almost 40 years, and he is very happy and humbled.

- Michael J. Diamondstein
Willie Stokes's release comes after the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania vacated his murder conviction, concluding that the state violated Stokes's constitutional rights by "withholding" crucial evidence about the false testimony of a key witness in the case, according to court documents.
Michael J. Diamondstein Secures Client’s Release from Pennsylvania Prison after 37 Years
Notable Cases

Diamondstein Prevails on Murder Charge for Rapper

Mr. Diamondstein saved my life. He is the best there is.

- Monte Small Atwell aka Benjy
Despite that fact that multiple videos showed local rap singer, Monte Small Atwell aka Benjy killing the decedent, a Philadelphia jury found Mr. Atwell Not Guilty of Murder. The video clearly showed that the unarmed decedent was chasing Mr. Atwell. Mr. Atwell’s attorney, Michael Diamondstein litigated a very effective self-defense case. After a number of withering cross examinations and a closing wherein Mr. Diamondstein exhorted the jurors that his client “would rather be judged by 12 than carried by 6” the jury agreed that Mr. Atwell’s actions were justified.
Diamondstein Prevails on Murder Charge for Rapper
Notable Cases

Six Narcotics Officers Acquitted in Federal Corruption Trial

The things that were said about these honorable men and police officers over the last eight to 10 months were ridiculous. A lot of people in this city owe these heroes an apology.

- Michael J. Diamondstein
Six members of an elite Philadelphia narcotics squad were acquitted of federal corruption charges – a verdict the men described as “vindication” after nearly a decade of federal scrutiny surrounding their conduct. A jury of six men and six women took 5 1/2 days to reject prosecutors’ arguments that former Officers Thomas Liciardello, Brian Reynolds, Michael Spicer, Perry Betts, Linwood Norman, and John Speiser routinely beat and robbed drug suspects during their time as members of the Narcotics Field Unit.
Six Narcotics Officers Acquitted in Federal Corruption Trial
Notable Cases

DA Seth Williams, in Federal Court, Pleads Not Guilty to Corruption Charges

This indictment is 24 hours old and yet too many politicians and commentators have already tried and convicted Seth Williams in the media. Simply because the government makes explosive allegations in a complaint doesn’t mean they’re going to prove it in a court of law.

- Michael J. Diamondstein
Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams pleaded not guilty to 23 counts of fraud, extortion, and bribery-related charges. But the problems of the city’s cash-strapped top prosecutor continued to mount outside the courtroom, a day after federal authorities accused him of repeatedly selling his influence to wealthy benefactors willing to bankroll his luxury tastes.
DA Seth Williams, in Federal Court, Pleads Not Guilty to Corruption Charges
Notable Cases

When Your Freedom Is at Stake, You Need a Tenacious Litigator

The man gave me my life back.

- Yusef Bey
It's 8:00 on a September morning but Michael Diamonstein has already been in his office for hours. A criminal defense lawyer, Diamondstein likes to be prepared before he goes to court. That preparation paid off to get an innocent man cleared of all charges.
When Your Freedom Is at Stake, You Need a Tenacious Litigator
Notable Cases

DA’s Office Drops Murder Charges in North Philly Shooting

Tremendous day, not only for Mr. Hill but for the entire Philadelphia justice system.

- Michael J. Diamondstein
With evidence missing and the investigation tainted by the involvement of a detective who pleaded guilty to impeding justice, the District Attorney’s Office has withdrawn murder charges against a 28-year-old man, Dante Hill, in a 2011 shooting outside a North Philadelphia sports bar.
DA’s Office Drops Murder Charges in North Philly Shooting
Notable Cases

Exclusive: Claire Risoldi to Pay Less for Insurance Fraud Scheme, Still Hopes to Avoid Jail Time

Diamondstein added that Berks County Senior Judge Stephen Lieberman, who is now overseeing the case, has authority to reconsider the sentence made by the previous judge, who retired last year.

Michael Diamondstein argued the original jail sentence is illegal because the previous judge assigned the case failed to address if Risoldi was eligible for re-entry, which would allow her to be released from jail early.
Exclusive: Claire Risoldi to Pay Less for Insurance Fraud Scheme, Still Hopes to Avoid Jail Time
Notable Cases

Prosecution Failure Leads to Dismissal of Philadelphia Drug Cases

On behalf of Mr. Jordan, we are extremely happy that that the Superior Court upheld the sound decision of Judge Means.

- Michael J. Diamondstein
On October 10, 2014, the Pennsylvania Superior Court upheld a lower court’s ruling that by failing to provide the defense with a copy of police paperwork in a criminal case (Com. v. Jordan, T., 175 EDA 2014 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2014 )), the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania was barred from the evidence at trial.
Prosecution Failure Leads to Dismissal of Philadelphia Drug Cases