Edward Reif, defense attorney, dies at 79

WHEN YOU first encountered Edward Reif you might have been a little put off by his gruff, no-nonsense manner.

But if you stuck around a while, you discovered that this man, one of the city's premier defense attorneys, was really a softy, a guy with the proverbial heart of gold who enjoyed helping people as much as he did defending some of the city's more notorious criminals or laying a bet on a long-shot at the Turf Club, in South Philly.

Edward Reif - whose clients over 53 years of practice ranged from mob figures and union thugs to crooked politicians, drug dealers and many others, big and small, caught in the criminal justice system - died Monday. He was 79 and lived in Center City.

Reif was badly injured April 1 when his car rammed a utility pole in a rainstorm while he was on his way to the Curran-Fromhold Prison where a client was to appear in a lineup. He had been in a coma ever since.

Among his clients were mob associates whom he represented at a series of trials of mob boss Nicodemo "Little Nicky" Scarfo and his henchmen on racketeering charges in the '80s.

He also represented a figure in the trial of Stephen Traitz III and his brother, Joseph, Roofers Union leaders convicted of racketeering and drug dealing.

"We called him 'the general,' " said fellow lawyer Joseph Santaguida. "On first appearance, he did seem gruff, but he was really a warm, kind-hearted man who would help anyone who needed him."

Santaguida was among a small coterie of lawyers who hung out together. One of their meeting places was the Turf Club, where Reif enjoyed playing the ponies.

"He came to my house every Christmas Eve for 30 years," Santaguida said, "even though he's Jewish."

Another member of the small group of friends was lawyer William Ciancaglini, who sometimes took Reif's cases when he became overburdened.

"He seemed grumpy, but he was really a very nice guy," Ciancaglini said. "I have been deluged with calls since the accident, people wanting to know how he was doing."

As a lawyer, "he was a wonderful mentor," Ciancaglini said. "Fifty-three years of knowledge is now gone."

Dora Lorello, Reif's secretary for 34 years, said he was "wonderful to work with, a terrific guy, honest, trustworthy. . . . He was the best lawyer I ever knew. He was up-front with everybody."

Reif was born in Philadelphia to Rose and Solomon Reif. He graduated from Central High School and the Temple University Law School.

He worked as an assistant district attorney under the late D.A. James C. Crumlish Jr. He left the office in 1962 for private practice, specializing in criminal law.

For a time, he was in partnership with the late and legendary Robert Simone.

In the mob trials, which led to long prison sentences for Scarfo and associates, Reif represented Joseph Grande and Lawrence Merlino.

"You can't convict Lawrence Merlino because he's Italian," he told the federal jury in that case. "You can't convict him because he's friendly with people who are alleged to be big mahofs in organized crime. You can't convict him on surmise or conjecture . . . "

However, the jury did, and Merlino, who later became a government witness, wound up with a sentence of 14 years in prison.

In the Roofers case, he represented Mark Goodwin, who was convicted with the Traitz brothers and Pietro J. Grippi of federal racketeering and drug charges in 2001.

Reif, who never married, has no immediate survivors.

Services: 11 a.m. tomorrow at Goldsteins' Rosenberg's Raphael Sacks funeral home 6410 N. Broad St. Burial will be in Montefiore Cemetery. *