Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Stockman Scott's Political Debate Porch -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Wharf Rat who wrote (59570)	10/10/2004 11:24:12 AM
From: Wharf Rat	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 89467

Limbaugh loses in court; law enforcement wins By Palm Beach Post Editorial HASH(0xf799d8) Friday, October 08, 2004 Rush Limbaugh has claimed that the attempt to examine his medical records is all about him. In fact, it's all about trying to enforce Florida law, and the 4th District Court of Appeal agrees. Late last year, the Palm Beach County State Attorney's Office, as part of a wider investigation into the illegal sale of prescription painkillers, obtained a search warrant for the offices of Mr. Limbaugh's physicians. Prosecutors wanted to see whether there was evidence to charge the radio talk-show host, who broadcasts from his home island of Palm Beach, with doctor-shopping — a felony, in which a patient uses overlapping prescriptions to obtain illegal amounts of pills. Because State Attorney Barry Krischer is a Democrat, the well-known Republican — who in October had entered treatment for painkiller addiction — dodged the issue and charged that the investigation was political. In its 2-1 ruling, however, the apolitical appeals court said that prosecutors had been anything but reckless. Prosecutors, wrote Chief Judge Gary Farmer, showed "an abundance of caution." Prosecutors had to persuade one judge that there was probable cause for a warrant and another to let them see the records. After obtaining the records, they notified Mr. Limbaugh, so he could seek a hearing on the privacy question. "Though commendable," the court said, "these steps were not required." Mr. Limbaugh's attorney argued that prosecutors should have sought a subpoena, but the appeals court came to the logical conclusion that notice "might cause the evidence to disappear." POPULAR PAGES Speaking on his show Wednesday, Mr. Limbaugh referred again to the investigation as a "fishing expedition" and cited Judge Melanie May's dissent, in which she said the majority took an "eyes wide shut" attitude to the privacy question. But Judge May concurred with the finding that prosecutors could use a search warrant for medical records. Her difference concerns disclosure of those records. Mr. Krischer had said from the start that he would agree to let a judge review the records in private to determine what is relevant to the investigation and to disclose nothing else. On Wednesday, after release of the ruling, Mr. Krischer's spokesman reiterated that position. Mr. Limbaugh will appeal, either for a rehearing or to the Florida Supreme Court. He will continue to claim that it's all political, but the court has noted the essence of the case: No one should be able to use medical privacy to conceal what may be evidence of a crime. palmbeachpost.com