BUSH DAUGHTER'S LAWYERS REQUEST PRIVATE HEARINGS

Lawyers for Noelle Bush, Gov. Jeb Bush's daughter, are asking an
Orange County judge to close her future drug-court hearings to the
public.

Citing an Orange County judge's recent ruling that found a patient's
privacy rights outweigh law-enforcement concerns, Noelle Bush's
lawyers are seeking to shut the public and the media out of her
regularly scheduled drug-court status hearings.

"This harsh glare of the public scrutiny is the exact evil that both
Congress and the Florida Legislature sought to remedy by enacting
broad confidentiality provisions to protect substance abuse patients,"
wrote Tallahassee attorney Peter Antonacci, one of three lawyers
defending Noelle Bush, 25.

Authorities and legal experts said Antonacci's move is unprecedented
but not entirely unexpected.

Stan Talcott, dean of Barry University's School of Law in Orlando,
said Antonacci may have a hard time convincing a judge because of
Florida's strong public-access laws.

"The balance generally tips quite heavily toward keeping court
proceedings open," Talcott said.

According to an eight-page motion filed on Friday by Antonacci, Noelle
Bush's case is the "perfect example of why the state and federal
confidentiality provisions are both wise and necessary."

The motion to close drug-court proceedings is the latest in a series
of legal battles at the Orange County courthouse that have tested the
extent of criminal investigations at drug clinics against drug
offenders' rights.

On Sept. 30, Orange Chief Circuit Judge Belvin Perry Jr. ruled that
privacy laws do not compel drug-treatment workers to testify in
drug-possession cases.

In that case, the Orange-Osceola State Attorney's Office had
subpoenaed four Center for Drug-Free Living employees to testify about
reports that Noelle Bush had crack cocaine on Sept. 9.

That day, other residents at the Orlando drug facility where she is
being treated called police to report that workers had found her with
about 0.2 grams of crack cocaine in one of her shoes, according to a
police report.

A Center for Drug-Free Living employee subsequently gave a written
statement to a police officer, only to rip it up under instructions
from her boss.

Perry's ruling on the motion to compel the workers to testify is on
appeal by the State Attorney's Office. Friday's filing also tests the
legal boundaries of drug courts, which are diversion programs meant to
help first-time drug offenders rehabilitate.

"Unfortunately this happens to be the governor's daughter, and we're
trying to figure out what the drug-court operating procedures are,"
said Randy Means, a State Attorney's Office spokesman.

"There are some questions now that have never been asked before, and
they need to be answered."

The governor's office has maintained that the Noelle Bush case is a
private matter. Katie Muniz, spokeswoman for the governor, on Saturday
said Bush would not comment on Antonacci's motion.

Karen Leavey, director of communications at the Orange County
Courthouse, on Saturday said drug offenders' medical treatment is not
typically discussed in drug-court status hearings. Leavey said
previous drug-court proceedings for Noelle Bush and other drug-court
participants have been open to the public.

"Those are open, and the theory behind it is that persons get to see
someone succeed," she said.

Leavey said Circuit Judge Reginald Whitehead, who oversees the
county's drug-court program, may decide to schedule a hearing this
week on Antonacci's motion.

David Bralow, an attorney representing the Orlando Sentinel, said
Noelle Bush's lawyers want an exception to the rule.

"They're trying to have a secret trial for Noelle Bush," Bralow
said.

"If they are right, what happened to all the people who have been
through drug court? . . . It seems to me they are asking for something
that no one else has had."