posted April 28, 2006 07:07 PM              

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Rush Limbaugh reached a settlement with prosecutors Friday in a fraud case involving prescription painkillers, though the conservative radio commentator maintains his innocence.

Limbaugh turned himself in to authorities about 4 p.m. on a warrant for fraud to conceal information to obtain a prescription, the first charge in the nearly 3-year-old case, said Teri Barbera, a spokeswoman for the state attorney. He was released an hour later on $3,000 bail.

Limbaugh’s attorney, Roy Black, said his client and prosecutors reached a settlement on a charge of doctor shopping.
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Under the deal, Limbaugh would eventually see the charge dismissed in 18 months if he continues treatment for drug addiction, Black said.

Limbaugh also must continue to seek treatment from the doctor he has seen for the past 2½ years, Black said.

Limbaugh entered a plea of not guilty in court Friday.

“Mr. Limbaugh and I have maintained from the start that there was no doctor shopping, and we continue to hold this position,” Black said in an e-mailed statement.

Prosecutors began investigating Limbaugh in 2003 after a tabloid newspaper reported that his housekeeper said he had used her to illegally buy painkillers. He soon took a five-week leave from his radio show to enter a rehabilitation program.

Prosecutors seized Limbaugh’s records after learning that he received about 2,000 painkillers, prescribed by four doctors in six months, at a pharmacy near his Palm Beach mansion. They contended that Limbaugh engaged in “doctor shopping,” or illegally deceived multiple doctors to receive overlapping prescriptions.

Limbaugh acknowledged he became addicted to pain medication, blaming it on severe back pain.

posted April 29, 2006 02:15 AM              

quote:

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I don't know about anyone else, but I find it absolutely disgusting that "drug addict" is synonymous with "criminal" in our society. This is one of the biggest reasons are prisons are so full.

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I understand what you're saying, Johnny. I don't think a "drug addict" equates with criminal either....and never did.....

.....but ironically, Limbaugh did.....or at least he SAID he did.....that's one of the things he'd love to rant about on his shows....getting rid of all those "druggies" on the street...

'Course, 'secret' addiction to "prescription drugs" didn't put him in that catagory at all...(in his small mind)

posted April 30, 2006 09:16 AM            

Limbaugh was not arrested and led away in handcuffs . Limbaugh did not plead guilty to anything. Limbaugh entered a "not guilty" plea.

It's no wonder those with their heads screwed on counter-clockwise are in a perpetual fog; they read and watch the leftist press outlets and believe every word.

Now, every Limbaugh hater must ask themselves why....a prosecutor who has a solid case against Limbaugh...a case with solid evidence with which to convict Limbaugh of wrong doing would enter into a deal with Limbaugh whereby Limbaugh admits no quilt whatsoever, serves no time
whatsoever and continues to do exactly the same things he's been doing for more than 2 years?

Let me answer that question for you. The prosecutor does not have a case against Limbaugh he can win in a court of law. After years of digging into every cubbyhole in Limbaugh's life, the prosecutor has exactly....nothing.

Saturday, April 29, 2006 11:24 a.m. EDT
Washington Post, Media Slant Limbaugh Plea

Rush Limbaugh's "not guilty" plea deal on doctor shopping charges and his deal with Palm Beach County prosecutors, which will end the case in his favor, was distorted by the Washington Post's report Saturday.

Writing in the Media Research Center's News Busters blog, Tim Graham charged that the Post "showed it liberal colors" when it reported, "Rush Limbaugh Arrested: The talk radio icon surrenders on a charge of committing fraud to obtain prescription drugs."

The "arrested" headline was first used by MSNBC news Friday evening - a theme that was picked up by other outlets like the Post.

"The headline for the story on the front of the Style section was also suggestive: 'Rush Limbaugh Turns Himself In On Fraud Charge In Rx Drug Probe.' "

While noting that the online link was "Limbaugh Charged With Prescription Drug Fraud," Graham said it was "accurate but incomplete," arguing that it could mislead readers into believing that Limbaugh "was admitting guilt, with words like 'surrenders' and 'turns himself in'" despite the fact that it a part of a deal with no admission of guilt.
Graham added that the story written by the Post's Peter Whoriskey claimed, "The agreement is not an admission of guilt to the charge," without explaining that Limbaugh had pleaded not guilty. Wrote Graham, "A less inflammatory set of headlines would have said 'Prosecutors, Limbaugh Strike Deal.'

Whoriskey, Graham charged, "underlined hypocrisy in his story, saying the drug probe 'has hovered over the law-and-order conservative,' " and later "without noting Limbaugh's critics are on the left in any way: 'The news that Limbaugh, a savage critics [sic] of others' moral behavior, was addicted to drugs was taken as a sign of hypocrisy by his detractors.'"

As Newsmax has reported [Rush Limbaugh Prescription Drug Case Settled], Limbaugh's lawyer Roy Black explained that the single charge of doctor shopping filed by the State Attorney is being held in abeyance under the terms of an agreement between the State and Mr. Limbaugh.

posted April 30, 2006 10:50 AM              

rush turned himself in on an arrest warrant, was booked, and released on 3,000$ bail
he's getting the same deal anyone else would get on this charge........except that most dont pay 30,000$$$ for investigative costs hehehehe
notice that the charge will not be dismissed for 18 months until he completes his drug treatment as per 'the deal'......

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Rush Limbaugh Booked for Felony Drug Fraud

BBSNews 2006-04-29 -- Rush Hundson Limbaugh surrendered to the Palm Beach County Sheriff's office on Friday shortly after 4:00 pm to answer a warrant for his arrest on a felony fraud charge for obtaining a prescription drug. He was booked on the charge of 893.13-3730 'fraud-conceal info to obtain prescription' at 4:25 pm by officer J. Hoffman according to the booking record at the Web site of Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office.

Rush Hundson Limbaugh. Booking photo related to felony fraud charge for 'fraud-conceal info to obtain prescription'. Booking number: 2006021379.

Image Credit: Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office 2006-04-28.

******

In a media release the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said, "On Friday, April 28, 2006 shortly after 4:00 pm Rush Limbaugh self surrendered himself to the Palm Beach County Jail with his Attorney Roy Black. Limbaugh was booked on a warrant issued by Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office for the charge Fraud – Conceal info to obtain prescription. He was released shortly before 5:00 pm on $3000 bond."

Limbaugh regularly lambasts users of illicit drugs. According to the Drug Policy Alliance he said in a recent broadcast of his radio show, "The FDA says there's no -- zilch, zero, nada -- shred of medicinal value to the evil weed marijuana. This is going to be a setback to the long-haired, maggot-infested, dope-smoking crowd." (Rush Limbaugh on his radio show, April 21, 2006)."

A news release claimed that some news reporting of Limbaugh's arrest was inaccurate, contradicting the booking record available online at the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office. The release quotes Limbaugh attorney Roy Black as saying, "As part of this agreement, Mr. Limbaugh also has agreed to make a $30,000 payment to the State of Florida to defray the public cost of the investigation. The agreement also provides that he must refrain from violating the law during the 18 month period, must pay $30 per month for the cost of "supervision" and comply with other similar provisions of the agreement."

At a news conference later the Palm Beach Post reported that Limbaugh, "pleaded not guilty to the crime — a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison — and posted the $3,000 bond."

The Post further reported, "A spokesman for the state attorney's office said a minimum of information was included in the affidavit, just enough to support the charge.

"The one single count does not reflect the totality of the evidence that we have," said spokesman Mike Edmondson.

posted April 30, 2006 11:31 AM              

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Jeb Bush's daughter charged with prescription fraud

By Deborah Sharp, USA TODAY

Tallahassee police via Reuters

Florida Gov. Jeb Bush's daughter, Noelle Bush, after her arrest early Tuesday.

The daughter of Florida Gov. Jeb Bush was arrested Tuesday in Tallahassee on charges of trying to fill a fake prescription for the popular tranquilizer Xanax.

Bush and his wife, Columba, issued a statement that they were "deeply saddened" by the incident involving their middle child and only daughter, Noelle, 24.

A Walgreens pharmacist suspicious about a call-in prescription notified police at 1:15 a.m. when Noelle Bush showed up at the drugstore's drive-through in her white Volkswagen to pick it up.

She was charged with prescription fraud, a felony that carries a maximum penalty of five years in jail and a $5,000 fine. Noelle Bush has no known criminal record and was released without having to post bond.

Experts say punishment for a first offense is usually drug treatment or probation.

Noelle Bush has been cited for about a dozen traffic violations and was involved in three automobile crashes since 1995, according to The Associated Press.

Police believe Noelle Bush called the pharmacy's voice mail system to issue herself the prescription, posing as a "Dr. Noelle Scidmore."

Police impounded the phone messages. The pharmacist told police that Bush called twice as Scidmore and twice as herself asking if the prescription was ready. The calls initially made him suspicious because the first call from "Scidmore" failed to specify the quantity of pills. The pharmacist called a colleague of the real Dr. Scidmore, who told him the doctor no longer practiced in Tallahassee. He "said it was a fake and to bust her," pharmacist Carlos Zimmerman told police.

The arrest echoed similar high-profile family struggles, from the recent marijuana abuse by England's Prince Harry to underage drinking by President Bush's twin daughters. In May, Jenna Bush was charged with using a fake ID to try to buy a margarita, and her sister Barbara was charged with underage drinking.

The twins performed community service, attended alcohol-awareness classes and paid $100 fines. The charges were dropped. A second drinking episode for Jenna Bush brought a $500 fine and a license suspension.

posted April 30, 2006 11:36 AM              

Friday, August 8, 2003 Posted: 5:02 PM EDT (2102 GMT)

ORLANDO, Florida (CNN) -- A judge sentenced the daughter of Florida Gov. Jeb Bush to 10 days in jail for contempt of court Thursday after she was found with crack cocaine in a drug rehabilitation center.

Noelle Bush, 25, was put in a court-ordered rehabilitation program in February after being arrested on charges that she attempted to use a fake prescription to buy drugs.

Police had been called to the rehabilitation center in September after they were told Bush was found in possession of "a small white rock substance." Officers field-tested the substance, which was 2 grams, and said it tested positive for cocaine, police said.

A judge refused to compel center employees to testify about the incident, and no charges were filed.

"This situation could have been much worse than what it is. You could have very easily been charged with a new felony offense," Whitehead said. "And if you were charged with that, you would have automatically been put out of drug court and you'd be facing two felony charges."

It is the second time Bush has been sent to jail for violating the terms of her rehabilitation program. She was given a three-day sentence in July after staff members at the facility accused her of taking prescription pills from a nurse's office.

http://archives.cnn.com/2002/LAW/10/17/noelle.bush/

posted April 30, 2006 11:46 PM            

How about this...for starters Petron.

Tell me how using prescribed medications is like getting high on non-prescribed Class A drugs...crack?

Tell me how writing phony prescriptions and trying to get them filled is like visiting a doctor who prescribes medication?

posted May 01, 2006 12:10 AM              

.....and one of the most deadly drugs is our very legal alcohol...

To answer your question tho (altho you didn't address it to me).....which was....

quote:

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Tell me how using prescribed medications is like getting high on non-prescribed Class A drugs...crack?

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Prescribed medications which 'aren't prescribed' ARE illegal and if you're illegally getting WAY MORE way more than the original perscription anyway, it can be just as bad as getting high on non-prescrtibed Class A drugs....

drugs, are drugs, are drugs...

Oh...another thing....why does he have to "seek treatment?"

Doesn't that indicate an addiction?

posted May 01, 2006 01:16 AM            

In the case of painkiller they are legal when prescribed and Limbaugh's were prescribed.

There is no proximate similarities between Limbaugh's case and Jeb's daughter.

If the democrat partisan prosecutor had a case against Limbaugh, he would have prosecuted it in a court of law.

posted May 01, 2006 11:21 AM            

All weekend long news broadcasts were filled with reports that talk radio host Rush Limbaugh had been "arrested" on charges of doctor shopping as part of a plea bargain worked out with his lawyer.

But - as even the liberal newsmagazine, Newsweek, admitted - the "arrest" reports were bogus.

"LIMBAUGH ARRESTED was the immediate headline on the wires and on TV," the magazine said in Monday's edition. "But the word 'arrest' was misleading."

"In fact, Limbaugh had pleaded not guilty, and his lawyer had worked out a deal that would cause the single charge to be dropped after 18 months as long as Limbaugh stayed out of trouble and continued to see a doctor who has helped him with an addiction to painkillers."

Still, the rest of the press did its level best to portray Limbaugh's voluntary trip to the Palm Beach County jail for a mugshot as if John Dillinger had just been apprehended.
"RUSH LIMBAUGH ARRESTED ON PRESCRIPTION DRUG CHARGE," blared the CNN headline Friday night.

ABC's "World News Tonight" began its coverage of the Limbaugh case dismissal with Elizabeth Vargas announcing: "Rush Limbaugh, one of the most popular and influential radio talk show hosts in America, was arrested in West Palm Beach today. The charges involve allegations of prescription drug fraud."

The actual mugshot belied the "arrest," reports, showing a beaming Limbaugh clearly delighted over finally winning his case.

Other reporters went out of their way to paint the talk host as a common street drug user, noting a 1995 statement where Limbaugh said he favored jail for illegal drug users.

Newsweek was one of the few to note that the top talker's addiction had nothing to do with recreational drug use - but was instead prompted by intense back pain.
"Limbaugh's drug problems began after he made a medical choice to try to preserve his radio voice . . . . The doctors wanted to go in through the back of his mouth, but Limbaugh was worried about his vocal cords. A different procedure was performed, and Limbaugh's suffering did not go away. He began to take pain pills in ever-larger numbers."

In fact, when news of the conservative talker's pain pill addiction first hit the National Enquirer in Oct. 2003, Palm Beach County prosecutor James Martz said going after low-level prescription drug users like Limbaugh was a waste of time.

Still, his office pursued the case as if they were prosecuting the Cali cartel.

posted May 01, 2006 12:19 PM            

Despite the mainstream media's best efforts to portray the deal struck between Florida prosecutors and Rush Limbaugh in the most negative light, the fact is it was a huge victory for the mega talk-show host.

Back in 2003, a Ronnie Earle wannabe frittered away Florida taxpayers' dollars by engaging in a politically motivated investigation that involved alleged doctor shopping by Limbaugh.

The Left immediately began salivating over the prospect of convicting the conservative icon for a felony that carried with it a possible five-year prison sentence.

Unlike a plea bargain, in this legal arrangement Limbaugh did not have to alter the position he has consistently maintained: He did not have to admit to having committed a crime.

Typically, a plea bargain involves admitting to a lesser charge. But pursuant to this settlement, Limbaugh filed a not guilty plea with the court.

The plea affirms what Limbaugh has always said — that there was no doctor shopping. Limbaugh was required to pay a small fine. He had to participate in a theatrical walk-in booking. And, as a condition to the prosecutors dropping the case 18 months from now, he must continue with his treatment under the same physician that he has been seeing for the last two and a half years, something he planned on doing anyway.

Rush's attorney, Roy Black, did an exceptional job for his client by avoiding the risk of a trial.

When the dust settles, there will be no record of criminal prosecution, no guilty plea, no probation, no community service, no further obligation of any kind. This is an unqualified win for Limbaugh.

In order to allow the D.A. to save face, Rush agreed to allow himself to be booked. In addition, he posed for a Tom DeLay-style happy mug shot and was subsequently released, a small price to pay for the certainty and finality of the settlement.

It is not unusual for prosecutors to make a deal of this kind when the potential defendant is a first-time offender with no prior criminal record.

What is unusual is that it took so long.

posted May 01, 2006 11:14 PM              

Summary: On Fox News' Hannity & Colmes, guest host and National Review editor Rich Lowry claimed that nationally syndicated radio host Rush Limbaugh was being "smeared" by the media "because you're seeing his picture up on the TV screen with the legend 'arrested' underneath it" after Limbaugh and Palm Beach County, Florida, state prosecutors reached an agreement on the charge that Limbaugh illegally obtained prescription drugs. Similarly, a Newsweek article asserted that the use of the word "arrested" in initial news stories was "misleading."

On the April 28 edition of Fox News' Hannity & Colmes, guest host and National Review editor Rich Lowry claimed that nationally syndicated radio host Rush Limbaugh was being "smeared" by the media "because you're seeing his picture up on the TV screen with the legend 'arrested' underneath it" after Limbaugh and Palm Beach Country, Florida, state prosecutors reached an agreement on the charge that Limbaugh illegally obtained prescription drugs. Lowry's accusation followed a comment by Fox News legal analyst and defense attorney Mercedes Colwin, who asserted that it is "not true" that "Rush Limbaugh was arrested."

Similarly, a Newsweek article by Arian Campo-Flores and Evan Thomas asserted that the use of the word "arrest" in initial news stories was "misleading." Without explaining what they meant by "misleading," Campo-Flores and Thomas reasoned: "In fact, Limbaugh had pleaded not guilty, and his lawyer had worked out a deal that would cause the single charge to be dropped after 18 months as long as Limbaugh stayed out of trouble and continued to see a doctor who has helped him with an addiction to painkillers." On his May 1 radio show, Limbaugh praised the Newsweek article as "amazing," "straightforward," and "fair" and informed readers that "we've linked to it at RushLimbaugh.com." (Nevertheless, the caption under a photo of Limbaugh accompanying the article on Newsweek's website read: "Limbaugh was arrested Friday on prescription drug charges.")

Lowry's and Newsweek's claims echoed an April 28 press release issued by Limbaugh's spokespeople that asserted without explanation that "some news reports that state Mr. Limbaugh was arrested are inaccurate." On his May 1 radio show, Limbaugh claimed, "There was no arrest." Limbaugh said: "[T]he word 'arrested' -- this is semantics. ... This was all arranged in advance. It was part of the deal. I walked over voluntarily. I was voluntarily processed is what this is."

An April 28 CNN.com article reported that while Limbaugh's attorney, Roy Black, "urged reporters not to call it an arrest -- because Limbaugh turned himself in and was never handcuffed -- a sheriff's spokesman said technically he was under arrest during his booking."

On April 29, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel -- one of many news outlets to report that Limbaugh had been arrested -- noted that Limbaugh had voluntarily "surrendered at the Palm Beach County Jail" where he was "fingerprinted" before being "released on $3,000 bail." An April 29 Associated Press article reported that "Limbaugh was booked, photographed and fingerprinted before being released on $3,000 bail."

Black's Law Dictionary (Fifth Edition) defines "booking" as an "[a]dministrative step taken after the arrested person is brought to the police station" that "may also include photographing, fingerprinting, and the like."

Similarly, the University of Pittsburgh's online legal dictionary states: "Booking - The process of photographing, fingerprinting, and recording identifying data of a suspect. This process follows the arrest."

Moreover, news outlets have reported that Limbaugh's "voluntary process[ing]" followed the issuance of an arrest warrant. On April 28, CNN host Lou Dobbs told viewers: "The West Palm Beach, Florida, sheriff's office saying Limbaugh, as a part of that settlement deal, had to turn himself in to authorities tonight after a warrant was issued for his arrest." And on the April 29 broadcast of ABC's World News Tonight, anchor Jim Avila stated: "The law-and-order radio host responded to an arrest warrant by turning himself in to the Palm Beach County sheriff."

On his May 1 radio show, Limbaugh acknowledged: "Yes, there was a warrant." He added, "It's called a capias warrant."

The Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines "capias" as "an arrest warrant." According to Dictionary.com, the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language defines "capias" as a "warrant for arrest," and Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law defines "capias" as "a writ or process commanding an officer to place a person under civil arrest in order to answer a charge."

If Lowry is indeed correct that the media "smeared" Limbaugh by reporting that Limbaugh had been "arrested," then Fox News smeared Limbaugh as well. Immediately prior to the April 28 edition of Hannity & Colmes, Fox News senior judicial analyst Andrew P. Napolitano -- a former New Jersey state judge -- agreed with host Bill O'Reilly that Limbaugh had been "arrested."

From the April 28 edition of Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor:

O'REILLY: Strange bedfellows. But let's get back to the criminal case. He has been arrested, but he's out on $3,000 bail. But the case has already been adjudicated. He doesn't have to go to trial.

NAPOLITANO: Correct. This is -- this is a simultaneous arrest and dismissal of the charges. He pleads not guilty. He admits to no wrongdoing. He agrees to keep his nose clean, which mean no arrests for the next 18 months. He pays the state $30,000 to reimburse it for the police overtime when they conducted those raids.
http://mediamatters.org/items/200605010011

posted May 01, 2006 11:27 PM              

Is there a diffirence with photos... etc.. is the code implemented differently?

posted May 02, 2006 04:11 AM              

"Watcha gonna do...when
they come for you..."

"I wasn't arrested!"
"I wasn't arrested!"
"I wasn't arrested!"

That's not what Petron found out...
......and I quote......

quote:

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On his May 1 radio show, Limbaugh acknowledged: "Yes, there was a warrant." He added, "It's called a capias warrant."

The Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines "capias" as "an arrest warrant." According to Dictionary.com, the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language defines "capias" as a "warrant for arrest," and Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law defines "capias" as "a writ or process commanding an officer to place a person under civil arrest in order to answer a charge."

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