CANFIELD — Judge Molly Johnson of Mahoning County Area Court on Friday dismissed the most serious charge Dr. Ali Kooshkabadi faced in her court — a felony count of having weapons under disability — and accepted guilty pleas to two lesser charges of aggravated menacing and menacing.

The disability charge was an allegation that he was prohibited from possessing firearms because of a previous conviction or pending criminal charge.

The judge also dismissed a misdemeanor charge of violating a protection order from April 1. The weapons charge was from April 3, and the menacing charges were from April 1.

The April 1 incident involved threats made to employees of an AT&T store in the Canfield area and also involved employees of an area medical provider.

As part of the plea agreement between the Mahoning County Prosecutor’s Office and Kooshkabadi, the doctor is required to have no contact with the store and the medical providers. He also forfeited his firearm.

Also as part of the plea agreement, Johnson ordered Kooshkabadi to have a mental health assessment and follow up with treatment.

The April 3 charges are related to incidents that occurred at Kooshkabadi’s home on St. Ursula Drive in Canfield Township.

According to documents obtained by The Vindicator from the Ohio Medical Board, on April 3, deputies with the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office were called to his home to take the doctor to the hospital for treatment of mental-health issues, but Kooshkabadi said “17 paratroopers stormed my house,” the document states.

He had a firearm when deputies detained him. He was taken to St. Elizabeth Youngstown Hospital, where he was admitted, the document states. While there, he described himself as “ISIS and a terrorist,” adding, “Call Iran,” the document states.

As a result of the two guilty pleas, Kooshkabadi was ordered to pay a $250 fine on each menacing charge and was ordered to spend 180 days in jail on one menacing charge and 30 days in jail on the other menacing charge. All but four days of the jail time were suspended.

He was given credit for four days already served in the Mahoning County jail, meaning he does not have any jail time left to serve.

Regarding the felony weapons charge, the case was dismissed as part of the plea involving the menacing charges, according to court documents. Kooshkabadi will pay court costs.

MENTAL HEALTH

Gina DeGenova, chief assistant prosecutor and legal and public information officer for the Mahoning County Prosecutor’s Office, said the plea agreement was reached because all of the issues involved in the charges “related to a mental health issue,” which was discussed in open court Friday.

Kooshkabadi sought treatment and a mental health assessment even before charges were filed against him, DeGenova said.

David Engler, Kooshkabadi’s attorney, said the plea agreement on the weapons charge was reached because Kooshkabadi was not prohibited from having firearms at the time.

Engler added that the protection-order charge was dismissed because the order “was never created properly,” adding that the Kooshkabadi was in Atlanta at the time he was ordered to appear for a protection order hearing in Youngstown. A notice of the hearing was sent to him one day before the hearing, Engler said.

Kooshkabadi still has a pending case in Mahoning County Area Court in Boardman. He is charged with making terroristic threats April 2. He is due for a preliminary hearing on that charge May 31 before Judge Joseph Houser.

MEDICAL BOARD

The medical board document states that Kooshkabadi appeared at the Fin Feather Fur Outfitters store in Boardman on April 2 and tried to buy a firearm. But after the staff found he was ineligible to buy one because of information found in a background check, Dr. Kooshkabadi “created a disturbance,” the document states.

“You threatened to kill staff there and made threats implying you were a terrorist, including yelling ‘Death to America,'” the document, addressed to Kooshkabadi, states. Police were called to the scene.

The document is part of the documentation the medical board used to suspend the doctor’s license to practice medicine and surgery April 26. The board said the suspension was because of incidents April 1, 2, and 3.

According to documents filed with Mahoning County Domestic Relations Court, Kooshkabadi’s wife, Maria, filed for divorce from her husband in September. Judge Beth Smith approved a protection order against Kooshkabadi Dec. 28.

The document states in September 2021, he was placed on leave by his employer. Online documents indicate he had worked for multiple medical facilities, including St. Elizabeth Youngstown Hospital.

The medical board document states he was placed on leave on or before September 2021 “after a series of incidents were reported by staff and patients.” Among them were emotional outbursts in an operating room during and after surgery.

erunyan@vindy.com