Defense attorney found guilty of stalking

A Corona del Mar defense attorney will face sentencing in June for stalking his ex-girlfriend, harassing her through e-mail then violating a restraining order by trying to contact her again, prosecutors said.

A jury found David Scharf, 46, guilty of a felony and two misdemeanors Wednesday for repeatedly sending a woman he was dating sexually aggressive and threatening e-mails in 2004 even after she said she did not want to see him anymore, according to prosecutors.

The woman was so afraid of Scharf she moved out of state with her three children, prosecutors proved.

Scharf used his background as a lawyer, for a time as a public defender, to try to intimidate the woman, authorities said.

He accused her of criminal acts and left her copies of California Penal Codes he claimed she could be arrested for.

Shortly thereafter, the woman took out a restraining order against him, according to prosecutors.

Scharf violated the restraining order when he contacted the woman’s mother three months after they stopped dating, prosecutors said.

Scharf will be sentenced June 13. He faces up to four years in state prison.

JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at [email protected].