STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLANT,
v.
ORQUIDEA FERNANDEZ, APPELLEE
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Florida appeals a trial court's suppression of evidence obtained from prescriptions allegedly obtained fraudulently. The appellate court reverses and remands because the trial court never addressed whether the defendant had standing to challenge the search—i.e., whether she had a reasonable expectation of privacy in prescriptions that may not have been lawfully authorized by the doctor.
The court reversed and remanded because the trial court failed to address the threshold standing issue of whether Fernandez had a reasonable expectation of privacy in the prescriptions. If the prescriptions were not in fact authorized by the doctor, Fernandez may lack standing to challenge their seizure, but this factual determination must be made by the trial court on remand.
[1] The issue of a defendant's standing, including whether they have a reasonable expectation of privacy in the searched area or items seized, may be raised for the first tim…
[2] A defendant bears the burden of establishing a reasonable expectation of privacy to claim a Fourth Amendment violation.
Previewing 2 of 6 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“There may be merit to the State's claim that Fernandez lacks a reasonable expectation of privacy in the prescriptions if they were not in fact authorized by the doctor.”
Establishes that the standing issue is dispositive and may bar suppression relief if prescriptions were fraudulently obtained.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceDetective Wayne Robinson investigated Fernandez after receiving information that she was writing and receiving prescriptions illegally from a pharmacy…
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The State appeals an order granting Orquídea Fernandez’s motion to suppress evidence in the State’s prosecution against her for six counts of fraudulently obtaining a controlled substance and five counts of trafficking in illegal drugs. Because the issue of Fernandez’s standing has not yet been addressed by the trial court, we have an inadequate record upon which to reach the central issue in this case — whether the search and seizure of the prescriptions on which the charges are based were unlawful. Accordingly, we reverse and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
Fernandez filed a motion to suppress call-in and handwritten prescriptions, statements made by employees of two pharmacies, and statements made by a particular doctor on the basis that the evidence was obtained as a result of an illegal search and seizure in violation of her right to privacy under the Fourth Amendment and the Florida Constitution. She alleged that her prescriptions, which were obtained from a pharmacy without a warrant, were medical records protected under Florida law by section 395.3025(4)(d), Florida Statutes (2007).1 She argued that section 893.07(4), Florida Statutes (2007),2 is unconstitutional as applied to the inspection and seizure of her prescriptions.
At the suppression hearing, the State presented the testimony of Detective *122Wayne Robinson. He testified that he received information from several people who had been arrested that Fernandez was writing and receiving prescriptions illegally from a pharmacy. During his investigation, he went to one of the pharmacies and was informed by the pharmacist that Fernandez had “[f]ive prescriptions for controlled substances that were allegedly authorized by” a particular doctor. Detective Robinson learned that Fernandez had worked for that doctor. Detective Robinson met with the doctor, who stated that he had not written the prescriptions at issue.
After the evidence was presented, the trial court stated that medical records are protected by section 395.8025(4)(d). The State responded that a prescription is not a medical record and that section 893.07(4) allows law enforcement to search and seize a prescription without a subpoena or warrant. The State also argued that there is no reasonable expectation of privacy with respect to completed prescriptions in possession of a pharmacy. The defense claimed that under section 456.057, Florida Statutes (2007), prescriptions are medical records because pharmacists maintain prescriptions. The trial court then inquired whether a fraudulent record is a medical record, but the defense did not have an answer to that question. The defense argued that no authority allows the police to violate the Fourth Amendment with respect to medical records and that section 893.07(4) is unconstitutional.
In a written order, the trial court suppressed the evidence on the basis that the prescriptions constituted confidential patient records, citing Whalen v. Roe, 429 U.S. 589, 97 S.Ct. 869, 51 L.Ed.2d 64 (1977), and section 395.3025(4). The trial court concluded that Fernandez had a reasonable expectation of privacy in the prescriptions under the Fourth Amendment and Article I, Section 12, of the Florida Constitution and that her privacy rights were violated when Detective Robinson searched the prescription records without a warrant or subpoena. The trial court concluded that section 893.07(4) does not authorize the search and seizure of prescriptions without a warrant or subpoena; rather, it provides a time limit for law enforcement to copy and inspect a patient’s records upon the issuance of either a warrant or subpoena. The trial court noted that section 893.07(4) appears overly broad and contains no checks and balances to protect a patient’s privacy, but the trial court did not rule on its constitutionality.
On appeal, the State argues that section 893.07(4) applies to the inspection and copying of prescription records and does not require a subpoena or warrant for law enforcement to access such records. The State claims that section 395.3025(4) does not apply to pharmacies. We note that the First District recently held that section 395.3025 does not apply to pharmacy records provided by the pharmacy to police during a “doctor shopping” investigation. See State v. Carter, 23 So.3d 798 (Fla. 1st DCA 2009). The court held that section 893.07(4) applied and that it did not require pharmacies to “withhold such records until a warrant is presented.” Id. We do not reach the application of sections 395.3025(4) or 893.07(4) to the instant case, however, because further proceedings are necessary to determine whether Fernandez had a reasonable expectation of privacy in the prescriptions.3
*123The State argues for the first time on appeal that due to the fraudulent nature of the prescriptions, Fernandez has no privacy right in the prescriptions.4 The State does not use the word standing. However, in challenging the trial court’s conclusion that the prescriptions constitute confidential patient records, the State argues on appeal that because the prescriptions were not prepared by a medical doctor or in response to a medical condition, they do not constitute prescriptions “as that term is generally understood.” The State contends that “[g]iven the fraudulent nature of the ‘prescriptions’ obtained in this case, any claimed medical right to privacy is inapplicable.” This is a standing argument that may be raised for the first time on appeal. See Hicks v. State, 929 So.2d 13, 16, 16 n. 3 (Fla. 2d DCA 2006) (noting that the term standing is used when determining whether the defendant’s constitutional rights were violated, which includes the threshold inquiry of whether the defendant has a reasonable expectation of privacy); McCauley v. State, 842 So.2d 897, 900 (Fla. 2d DCA 2003) (“Although this point was not argued by the State at the hearing on the motion, the concept of standing has been subsumed into Fourth Amendment issues and can be raised for the first time on appeal.”); State v. Lennon, 963 So.2d 765, 769 (Fla. 3d DCA 2007) (“Although not presented below by the State, the issue of standing may be properly addressed for the first time on appeal.”).
There may be merit to the State’s claim that Fernandez lacks a reasonable expectation of privacy in the prescriptions if they were not in fact authorized by the doctor. Cf. Hicks, 929 So.2d at 16 (holding that defendant had no reasonable expectation of privacy in stolen item because he did not lawfully possess it; therefore, he was not entitled to suppression of stolen item in a prosecution for offenses relating to stolen item); Lennon, 963 So.2d at 770 (same). However, because this specific issue was never argued to the trial court below, the trial court never made any specific factual findings regarding whether the prescriptions were authorized and, if so, whether Fernandez had a reasonable expectation of privacy in them. The parties should be given a chance to fully address this issue. See McCauley, 842 So.2d at 900. Accordingly, we reverse the order suppressing the evidence and remand for further proceedings. If Fernandez wishes to pursue her motion to suppress, the trial court shall hold a hearing on the issue of standing, at which time Fernandez will have the burden to establish that she had a reasonable expectation of privacy in the prescriptions. See Rakas v. Illinois, 439 *124U.S. 128, 130 n. 1, 99 S.Ct. 421, 58 L.Ed.2d 387 (1978); Hicks, 929 So.2d at 16.
Reversed and remanded.
SILBERMAN, J., Concurs.
FULMER, CAROLYN K, Senior Judge, Concurs in result only.
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Hendley v. State, 58 So. 3d 296 (Fla. 2d DCA 2011)…tate, 842 So. 2d 897, 900 (Fla. 2d DCA 2003). In response to the State’s argument, Mr. Hendley urges this court to remand this matter to the circuit court to develop further factual evidence to determine his standing as we did in State v. Fernandez, 36 So. 3d 120 (Fla. 2d DCA 2010), and State v. Johnson, 40 So. 3d 904 (Fla. 2d DCA 2010). But a remand for that purpose would be a futile exercise in this case. “The law is clear that for a defendant to have standing to challenge a search, he or she must show a…
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State v. Mont Bean, 36 So. 3d 116 (Fla. 2d DCA 2010)…wed only limited arguments and required the parties to provide brief stipulations about the facts instead of requiring the parties to present the usual evidentia-ry hearing. The case that the trial court heard a few days earlier, State v. Fernandez, 36 So. 3d 120 (Fla. 2d DCA 2010), was appealed to this court. A separate panel of judges has reversed that order. We likewise reverse this order. As explained below, this court concludes that the suppression issue presented to the trial court is more nuanced tha…
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State v. SUN, 82 So. 3d 866 (Fla. 4th DCA 2011)…l level.”); see also State v. Hodges, 616 So. 2d 994, 994 n. 1 (Fla.1993) (“Such a[n] [as-applied] challenge requiring resolution of extensive factual matters cannot be raised for the first time on appeal.” (citing Trushin)). Cf. State v. Fernandez, 36 So. 3d 120, 121 (Fla. 2d DCA 2010) (where the defendant expressly argued in her motion to suppress that subsection 893.07(4) was unconstitutional as applied to the inspection and seizure of her prescription records). Affirmed. HAZOURI and Ciklin, JJ., concur…
Previewing 3 of 8 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Rakas v. Illinois, 439 U.S. 128 (U.S. 1978)
- United States v. Salvucci, 448 U.S. 83 (U.S. 1980)
- Whalen v. ROE, 429 U.S. 589 (U.S. 1977)
- State v. Zina Johnson, 814 So. 2d 390 (Fla. 2002)
- Hicks v. State, 929 So. 2d 13 (Fla. 2d DCA 2006)
- State v. Carter, 23 So. 3d 798 (Fla. 1st DCA 2009)
- State v. Lennon, 963 So. 2d 765 (Fla. 3d DCA 2007)
- McCAULEY v. State, 842 So. 2d 897 (Fla. 2d DCA 2003)
- Robert B. Cushing, D.D.S. v. Dep't of Prof'l Reg., 416 So. 2d 1197 (Fla. 3d DCA 1982)