Posted on 10/06/2004 5:35:18 PM PDT by wagglebee
MIAMI, Oct. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Stating that Rush Limbaugh should not have to give up his rights to privacy to prove his innocence, attorney Roy Black said today that he would immediately appeal to overturn today's decision by a two-judge majority of a three-judge panel from the state's Fourth District Court of Appeal.
"We strongly disagree with the decision of the Court majority because it does not recognize a patient's right to medical privacy that the U.S. Congress, the Florida Legislature and the citizens of Florida have granted to patients such as Mr. Limbaugh, who has not even been charged with anything, "Mr. Black said. "There was no doctor shopping, but Mr. Limbaugh's privacy rights should not be sacrificed to prove his innocence."
"We are encouraged by the strong dissent of Judge May who clearly recognized that the state cannot trump a patient's right to privacy in medical matters," Mr. Black continued. "We will be seeking further appellate review of this decision."
The decision issued today by Chief Judge Gary M. Farmer and Judge Carole Y. Taylor denied without prejudice Mr. Black's petition for a writ to prevent investigators looking at records seized from four of Mr. Limbaugh's doctors.
However, the decision specifies that Mr. Limbaugh can seek a review of the records by the judge that issued the search warrants to make sure the records fall within the scope of the warrants, and can seek additional protection preventing disclosure of the records to "third parties."
Judge Melanie G. May, in her dissenting opinion, said the writ should have been granted, noting that "Our supreme court has clearly indicated the privacy interest in medical records trumps the State's investigative subpoena powers."
In her dissent, she said that the majority decision, by permitting judicial review of the records prior to disclosure to investigators and to prevent third party disclosure, in effect denied the writ, but then grants "the very review sought by the petitioner in this case, which is why I would grant the petition."
Mr. Black said he was optimistic that the decision would be reversed on appeal. While state law does not prohibit law enforcement from obtaining medical records in an investigation, the Florida legislature created a broad doctor-patient privilege and a procedure for obtaining confidential medical information, he said.
"It put a zone of privacy around a patient's medical records, and it gave those records special status more than any other records," Mr. Black said. "We're not saying they can't investigate. There are numerous methods of investigation. They cannot just ignore it." By skipping the subpoena process, prosecutors were able to seize all of Mr. Limbaugh's records without showing their relevancy of any particular record to the investigation of the prescriptions, Mr. Black said. He said a final decision has not been made but it is likely that the entire Fourth District Court of Appeal will be asked to review the case and if necessary we will appeal to the Florida Supreme Court.
Mr. Limbaugh has not been charged with a crime and state prosecutors have said in court papers that they could not be sure what to charge, "if anything," until after they looked at the records.
Prosecutors have said they are investigating possible doctor shopping, which is defined as getting overlapping prescriptions from two doctors, each unaware of the other's prescription. They have said they are looking into prescriptions written for Mr. Limbaugh between March and September 2003.
Mr. Limbaugh told his radio audience last October that he had become physically dependent to prescription painkillers that had been prescribed by his doctors. He entered a five-week treatment program and returned to the air in late November. Shortly, afterward, the State Attorney's Office raided his doctor's offices.
I uneagerly await the accidental disclosure of any medical information not already accidentally released by the prosecutors.
There's nothing to release, they've already leaked his pharmacy records. It's highly likely that Rush had to go to a number of doctors when his deafness came on.
If it's so important that Rush Limbaugh release his medical records, why is it that John Kerry, (seeking the highest office in the world), doesn't have to release his?
Privacy apparently only applies to Democratic Presidents who like chubby interns.
Persecution at it's worst.
The left somehow thinks that destroying conservatives somehow validates their insanity.
The decision by the court is ludacrous. My guess is it's a liberal court due to its ability to look past the law for its ruling.
It was a Republican judge.
Wait, it was 2-1 and how many Clinton/Carter judges were there.
Isn't amazing how in Roe v. Wade, the "right to privacy" in the context of abortion was created out of thin air, where just a couple months ago various health care providers refused to disclose, minus patient names, medical records requested to prove the medical neccessity of partial-birth abortion and the suppossed danger to the health of the mother due to privacy violations but Rush, with no charges, and with illegal leaks, is getting burned, to the expense of all other Floridians? (Sorry about the runon)
"I uneagerly await the accidental disclosure of any medical information not already accidentally released by the prosecutors."
Please point me to ANY medical information regarding Rush released by the prosecutors, accidentally or against the law.
I'm not going to do your research for you on this one. The prosecutor let a lot of info out about the whole situation.
"I'm not going to do your research for you on this one."
Meaning you are simply repeating what you heard somewhere, you have not done any research ...
"The prosecutor let a lot of info out about the whole situation."
The prosecutor let out exactly what he was required to let out by the Florida Sunshine Laws.
"...we never got to see Clinton's or Hillery's college dissertation, either"
Ask, and ye shall...etc.!
OMG, UNBELIEVABLE: Wellesley College 1969 Student Commencement Speech of Hillary D. Rodham
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/844024/posts
I meant what I said.
From you ... "Meaning ... you have not done any research ... "
I'd like to see you prove that. You are 100 percent wrong.
Ease up there.
BTW, what's your beef?
"The prosecutor let a lot of info out about the whole situation."
The only thing reaching anywhere near "medical records" were the records obtain through the examination of the pharmacy records. Since they were used in the Application for the Search warrants ( http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/rushsearch1.html ), they are public records and are required to be released under the Florida Sunshine laws ( http://myfloridalegal.com/sunshine ).
I have seen NO reports anywhere of any other information regarding Rush's medical records being released -
You are simply wrong...
My "beef" is with people who toss out erroneous information, who have NOT done adequate research.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.