The Bobster
Senior News Editor since 2004
https://nypost.com/2018/04/30/silvers-ex-doctor-pal-dishes-on-first-time-meeting-him/
Silver’s ex-doctor pal dishes on first time meeting him
By Kaja Whitehouse
April 30, 2018 | 8:31pm
A once-prominent cancer doctor took the witness stand at Sheldon Silver’s corruption retrial Monday, telling jurors he was lured into a corrupt scheme by the former head of the state Assembly within days of meeting him in 2003.
Dr. Robert Taub said he learned that Silver wanted help becoming a “rainmaker” at his mesothelioma-focused law firm less than a week after being introduced to the Manhattan Democrat through a mutual friend, Daniel Chill, a lawyer with Albany connections.
“The phrase he [Chill] used was ‘Shelly wants cases,’” Taub said of Silver’s cryptic message.
Then a Columbia University doctor who specialized in the rare form of cancer that stems from exposure to asbestos, said he understood Silver’s message to mean that he wanted to be a “rainmaker” at Weitz & Luxenberg, which was getting rich suing on behalf of mesothelioma victims.
At the time, Silver was “of counsel” at Weitz & Luxenberg and so stood to earn a healthy cut of the money from such lawsuits.
“I thought it would profit him, sure” Taub told the Manhattan federal jury.
Taub, 82, was on the stand for less than an hour of the first day of Silver’s retrial.
On Tuesday, the doctor is expected to testify that Silver gave him $500,000 in state grants and other benefits in exchange for his patient referrals, which helped earned Silver a cool $3 million over the years.
Silver, 74, is being tried a second time over allegations that he sold his office in exchange for bribes from Taub and the two real estate firms.
His 2015 conviction was overturned on appeal based on a Supreme Court ruling reversing the bribery conviction of former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell. That ruling made it no longer illegal for a politician to line his or her pockets off people seeking favors unless the politician does something “official” in exchange for gifts, such as passing legislation.
In their opening remarks Monday, prosecutors said they will prove Silver engaged in “a decade of corruption and lies” through two agreements.
“Selling your office for $3 million is corruption plain and simple. It’s illegal,” Assistant US Attorney Damian Williams told the jury.
“He abused his power for personal gain,” and then he lied about it, Williams said.
But defense lawyers argued that Silver did nothing wrong according to the letter law — even if his actions were “distasteful.”
“Distasteful is not criminal. A conflict of interest is not a criminal offense,” defense lawyer Michael Feldberg told a Manhattan federal jury in opening statements at Silver’s corruption retrial Monday.
Silver’s ex-doctor pal dishes on first time meeting him
By Kaja Whitehouse
April 30, 2018 | 8:31pm
A once-prominent cancer doctor took the witness stand at Sheldon Silver’s corruption retrial Monday, telling jurors he was lured into a corrupt scheme by the former head of the state Assembly within days of meeting him in 2003.
Dr. Robert Taub said he learned that Silver wanted help becoming a “rainmaker” at his mesothelioma-focused law firm less than a week after being introduced to the Manhattan Democrat through a mutual friend, Daniel Chill, a lawyer with Albany connections.
“The phrase he [Chill] used was ‘Shelly wants cases,’” Taub said of Silver’s cryptic message.
Then a Columbia University doctor who specialized in the rare form of cancer that stems from exposure to asbestos, said he understood Silver’s message to mean that he wanted to be a “rainmaker” at Weitz & Luxenberg, which was getting rich suing on behalf of mesothelioma victims.
At the time, Silver was “of counsel” at Weitz & Luxenberg and so stood to earn a healthy cut of the money from such lawsuits.
“I thought it would profit him, sure” Taub told the Manhattan federal jury.
Taub, 82, was on the stand for less than an hour of the first day of Silver’s retrial.
On Tuesday, the doctor is expected to testify that Silver gave him $500,000 in state grants and other benefits in exchange for his patient referrals, which helped earned Silver a cool $3 million over the years.
Silver, 74, is being tried a second time over allegations that he sold his office in exchange for bribes from Taub and the two real estate firms.
His 2015 conviction was overturned on appeal based on a Supreme Court ruling reversing the bribery conviction of former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell. That ruling made it no longer illegal for a politician to line his or her pockets off people seeking favors unless the politician does something “official” in exchange for gifts, such as passing legislation.
In their opening remarks Monday, prosecutors said they will prove Silver engaged in “a decade of corruption and lies” through two agreements.
“Selling your office for $3 million is corruption plain and simple. It’s illegal,” Assistant US Attorney Damian Williams told the jury.
“He abused his power for personal gain,” and then he lied about it, Williams said.
But defense lawyers argued that Silver did nothing wrong according to the letter law — even if his actions were “distasteful.”
“Distasteful is not criminal. A conflict of interest is not a criminal offense,” defense lawyer Michael Feldberg told a Manhattan federal jury in opening statements at Silver’s corruption retrial Monday.