Posted on 05/03/2006 12:38:20 PM PDT by JTN
Rush Limbaugh's defenders say he never would have been investigated for prescription fraud if he weren't a famous conservative commentator, and they're probably right. For one thing, it's unlikely The National Enquirer would have been interested in the pill popping habits of an average joe, or even an average millionaire.
Yet the talk radio titan's detractors also have a point when they complain that he got off with a slap on the wrist after obtaining thousands of painkillers under false pretenses, a result they find especially galling in light of his general support for the war on drugs and his specific support for incarcerating drug users. "Perhaps the only way for draconian drug laws to change," says Drug Policy Alliance Executive Director Ethan Nadelmann, "is for people like Limbaugh to join other nonviolent drug offenders behind bars."
One of those nonviolent drug offenders is Richard Paey, who faced allegations remarkably similar to those against Limbaugh. Both men suffered severe back pain for which they underwent unsuccessful surgery, and both were accused of fraudulently obtaining more narcotics than they really needed. But while Limbaugh remains a free man and will not even face criminal charges if he continues to attend drug treatment for the next 18 months (something he was planning to do anyway), Paey is serving a 25-year sentence in a Florida prison.
Limbaugh was accused of "doctor shopping," getting painkillers from several physicians who were not aware of the other prescriptions. Although he denies the charge, he admits he became addicted to the painkillers, which by definition means he was taking them for reasons the law does not recognize as medically legitimate--as an "escape" (his word) from stress or unhappiness.
Paey, who moved to Florida from New Jersey, was accused of forging painkiller prescriptions from his New Jersey doctor. The doctor, who could have faced criminal charges if the government decided he was dispensing narcotics too freely, at first confirmed that the prescriptions were legitimate but later changed his story.
There was no evidence that Limbaugh or Paey sold painkillers on the black market, and both men insisted they had done nothing illegal. But unlike Limbaugh, who publicly confessed to a drug problem and voluntarily entered treatment, Paey said he really did need large quantities of narcotics to treat his physical symptoms, a situation that is not uncommon among patients who suffer chronic pain for years and develop tolerance to the analgesic effect of their medicine.
Paey's refusal to call himself an addict, more than Limbaugh's celebrity, seems to be the crucial factor that led to such dramatically different outcomes in these two cases, both of which were handled by Florida prosecutors under Florida law. Like Limbaugh, Paey was initially offered an arrangement through which he could have avoided jail--although, unlike Limbaugh, he would have had to plead guilty.
After Limbaugh's deal was announced, a spokesman for the Palm Beach County State Attorney's Office explained that "it's a diversion specifically for first-time offenders with no prior criminal history or arrest." He called it "standard for someone who is dealing with their addiction."
But because Paey insisted there was no addiction to deal with, the prosecution threw the book at him, charging him not just with prescription fraud but with drug trafficking. That charge, which carried a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years, was based entirely on the quantity of pills involved, a standard under which Limbaugh also qualifies as a drug trafficker--which is presumably why the single charge filed against him refers to just 40 pills, rather than the thousands he reportedly obtained.
I'm not saying Limbaugh should be grateful he's not in prison. He is understandably angry about the way his private life became fodder for prosecutors and the press. But maybe the next time he goes on a tear about prosecutorial abuses, he could spare a few words for Richard Paey.
Ping
Limbaugh was accused of "doctor shopping," getting painkillers from several physicians who were not aware of the other prescriptions.[snip]
Paey...was accused of forging painkiller prescriptions from his New Jersey doctor.
This was a democratic planned accusation and power play to discredit El Rushbo....plain and simple...I do hope he stays of the pills.
The District Attorney should be grateful that he didn't get disbarred for this stunt.
How many rich people go to jail for drug problems? You'd need recording studios in prison just to get new music in the stores. :)
Mustn't let little things like evidence, due process or presumption of innocence get in the way of a perfectly good smear.
Reason...all the hearsay that's fit to print.
"Although he denies the charge, he admits he became addicted to the painkillers, which by definition means he was taking them for reasons the law does not recognize as medically legitimate"
Paey's case is entirely different.
Paey was convicted of fraud. Limbaugh was convicted of nothing.
Paey refused treatment. Limbaugh has voluntarily entered treatment and will continue.
The Prosecutor had Paey dead to rights, with documentary evidence and the doctor presumably willing to testify. The Prosecutor, by his own admission, would have had a hard time making a case against Limbaugh, however.
Besides that, the two cases are exactly the same!
which is presumably why the single charge filed against him refers to just 40 pills, rather than the thousands he reportedly obtained....Reported is not evidence. The prosecutor could only PROVE 40 pills were illicitly obtained.
That, and there was the whole "complete and total lack of evidence" thing that the prosecutor on Limbaugh's case had to deal with.
Not enough has been made of this point.
Has anyone suggested that the DA made this deal in exchange for a promise of not being named in a countersuit for defamation, medical privacy abuse, prosecutorial abuse, etc.?
-PJ
Man, I'm so sick of this liberal vendetta crap against all Conservatives.
Sandy Burglar steals classified documents ffrom The National Archives, and gets diddly-squat. And... etc etc etc... the list of lib-dem criminals getting off with a mere slap is legion.
Whatever happened to the Rule of Law? It's AWOL, since BJ Klintoon's 8 horrid years.
PLEASE, no facts to muddy up the smear.....
Thank you! You summarized the differences far more quickly and efficiently than I would have. You also appear to have done so without growling "BULLS**T" at your computer at every other sentence in the original article. Great work!
You're right about that. Paey is in a wheelchair and was taking the drugs to control his pain...not because of an addiction.
Paey was convicted of fraud. Limbaugh was convicted of nothing.
Paey refused to cut a deal because he had done nothing wrong. Rush made one.
The Prosecutor had Paey dead to rights, with documentary evidence and the doctor presumably willing to testify.
Actually, the doctor originally told the feds that the prescriptions were legitimate, then changed his story when they threatened to come after him. The pharmacists backed Paey.
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