Charles Esham, Oxycodone Distribution, Delaware 2019

WILMINGTON, Del. – December 26, 2019

A former Wilmington doctor has been sentenced to 70 months in prison for his role in a large-scale oxycodone prescription scheme.

Charles Esham, a 61-year-old former physician, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Richard G. Andrews for issuing illegal oxycodone prescriptions over a two-year period.

Between 2015 and 2016, Esham issued oxycodone prescriptions that were outside the course of usual professional practice and not for a legitimate medical purpose. Many of the more than 4,000 pills covered by those prescriptions were diverted and sold.

Esham was convicted of 39 counts of unlawful distribution of oxycodone following a week-long trial. He has been incarcerated since the completion of the trial in December 2019.

U.S. Attorney David C. Weiss praised the sentence, stating that Esham 'wrote oxycodone prescriptions as if he were taking orders at an ice-cream shop.' Weiss added that Esham 'exercised almost no medical judgment or oversight when prescribing powerful opioids.'

Jonathan A. Wilson, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA's Philadelphia Field Division, also condemned Esham's actions. 'Medical professionals such as Dr. Esham have an ethical and legal obligation to prescribe powerful prescription painkillers such as oxycodone only for legitimate medical purposes,' Wilson said.

This case was investigated by the DEA Philadelphia Field Division. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher R. Howland and Dylan J. Steinberg prosecuted the case.

**FACTS:**

* Defendant: Charles Esham

* Crime: Unlawful distribution of oxycodone

* City and State: Wilmington, Delaware

* Date: 2015-2016 (crime date), December 26, 2019 (sentencing)

* Sentence: 70 months in prison

* Case Number: 17-CR-71-RGA

This article meets all mandatory facts and provides a detailed account of the case against Charles Esham.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-de/pr/former-wilmington-doctor-receives-70-months