A twice-convicted man on parole for forgery was in court again yesterday accused of faking a law degree, prosecutors said.
David Scher, 35, of Newton was arraigned in Boston Municipal Court on a charge of falsely claiming to hold a law degree, Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley’s office said.
Judge Sally Kelly did not impose a cash bail, but ordered Scher held for violating his parole.
He faces up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine if convicted.
In 2014, Scher was found guilty of stealing a laptop computer from Suffolk University Law School, where he was a student.
Following the theft charge, Scher did not graduate and, so, was not awarded a juris doctorate degree, prosecutors said.
However, after Scher was convicted, he went to the Boston Municipal Court clerk’s office in order to remove the authenticated verdict slip that showed he was found “guilty” and replace it with a forged slip that showed a jury found him “not guilty,” prosecutors said.
“This falsified court document was subsequently presented to the Department of Criminal Justice Information Services, and Suffolk University,” prosecutors said.
“The forged slip was also submitted under the pains and penalties of perjury to the Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons during administrative proceedings to revoke Scher’s broker’s license for his failure to report his conviction to the board.”
Scher was arraigned on those offenses in 2016 and ultimately pleaded guilty in April 2017 to charges of forgery, tampering with a court document, two counts of perjury, and three counts of uttering a false document.