JOEL A. USSERY, PETITIONER,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, RESPONDENT
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The court denied certiorari and upheld the trial court's authorization of a state subpoena for the defendant's medical records, including blood test results from hospitalization following an automobile accident, where proper notice was given and relevance to the DUI investigation was established.
The state may subpoena a defendant's medical records, including blood test results from hospitalization, when proper notice is given to the patient and, if the patient objects, the state demonstrates the relevance of the records to its criminal investigation.
[1] A state may subpoena a defendant's confidential medical records, including blood test results from medical treatment, when proper notice is given to the patient and the s…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAn investigation of an automobile accident involving petitioner's vehicle indicated petitioner was under the influence of alcohol. The state attorney …
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PER CURIAM.
We deny a petition for certiorari seeking relief from an order allowing the state to obtain the defendant’s medical records pursuant to an investigative subpoena.
An investigation of an automobile accident involving a vehicle driven by petitioner indicated petitioner was under the influence of alcohol. The state attorney gave notice to petitioner that it intended to subpoena the medical records of his hospitalization for injuries received in the accident, particularly the results of tests of blood taken for purposes of medical treatment. Petitioner objected, and the trial court, after conducting a hearing, authorized the subpoena.
The trial court concluded that section 27.04, Florida Statutes (1993), which gives the state the authority to summon witnesses, authorizes the state to subpoena medical records under these circumstances, so long as proper notice is given as required by section 395.3025(4), Florida Statutes (1993), which provides that medical records are confidential but obtainable by subpoena issued after notice.
In a recent case on all fours, the Fifth District concluded that the state can subpoena these medical records so long as the patient is given notice before the subpoena is issued and, if the patient objects, the state carries its burden of showing the relevance of the records to its criminal investigation. Hunter v. State, 639 So. 2d 72 (Fla.5th DCA.1994). We agree with Hunter, conclude that its requirements were met here, and therefore deny certiorari.
WARNER, POLEN and KLEIN, JJ., concur.
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State v. Zina Johnson, 814 So. 2d 390 (Fla. 2002)…rocedural requirements. Based on the clear language of the statute, we hold that the state attorney’s subpoena power under section 27.04, Florida Statutes (1997), cannot override the notice requirement of section 395.3025(4)(d). See Ussery v. State, 654 So. 2d 561, 562 (Fla. 4th DCA 1995); Hunter v. State, 639 So. 2d 72 (Fla. 5th DCA 1994); State v. Buchanon, 610 So. 2d 467, 468 (Fla. 2d DCA 1992); State v. Wenger, 560 So. 2d 347 (Fla. 5th DCA 1990). To hold otherwise would render the statute meaningless. Ha…
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State v. Rutherford, 707 So. 2d 1129 (Fla. 4th DCA 1997)…’s medical records without complying with the notice provision of subsection 395.3025(4)(d), Florida Statutes (1995), and the procedural requirements of Hunter v. State, 639 So. 2d 72 (Fla. 5th DCA 1994), which this court adopted in Ussery v. State, 654 So. 2d 561 (Fla. 4th DCA 1995). The trial court granted Rutherford’s motion to suppress the medical records obtained by the subpoena, on the basis of State v. Wenger, 560 So. 2d 347 (Fla. 5th DCA 1990).1 The court denied the state’s request for an opportunity…
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McALEVY v. State, 947 So. 2d 525 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006)…earing to the patient is meaningless ... The court must [*530] act as a shield to protect the patient’s right to privacy by determining whether medical records are relevant to a pending criminal investigation. 639 So. 2d at 74. In Ussery v. State, 654 So. 2d 561 (Fla. 4th DCA 1995), this court agreed with Hunter, but did not expressly state that evidence must be presented. Rather, we concluded that all requirements are met to allow the state to issue a subpoena when notice is provided and the state “carries…
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- Hunter v. State, 639 So. 2d 72 (Fla. 5th DCA 1994)