Tiger fighting subpoena for prescription records

Tiger Woods‘ attorney is fighting prosecutors’ attempts to subpoena the 15-time major champion’s prescription drug records from a pharmacy, according to court records filed Wednesday.

In a response to the state’s motion for a subpoena, attorney Douglas Duncan wrote that Woods has a constitutional right to privacy interest in his prescription records and requested a hearing to determine whether prosecutors should be allowed to obtain Woods’ records on file at Lewis Pharmacy in Palm Beach, Florida.

“This right is admittedly not absolute should the State show the relevance of the records to its criminal investigation and thus warrant intrusion into Mr. Woods’ privacy,” Duncan wrote in the motion.

Prosecutors are requesting the number of times Woods’ prescriptions were filled from Jan. 1 to March 27, the number of pills, the dosage amounts and any instructions that accompanied the pills, including warnings about driving while taking them, according to the motion for a subpoena.

Woods pleaded not guilty in his DUI case on March 31, four days after his SUV clipped a trailer and rolled over on its side not far from his home in Hobe Sound, Florida. Officers said he was impaired and had two pills in his pants pocket.

Woods is charged with misdemeanor DUI and refusal to submit to a lawful test and distracted driving, a moving violation.

Woods said in a statement following his arrest that he was stepping away from professional golf to seek treatment and focus on his health. It is believed that he entered a treatment facility in Switzerland earlier this month.

Duncan said the defense objected to the issuance of a subpoena and requested a court hearing to determine if the prescription drug records are “relevant to a criminal investigation.”

If the court decides to grant the state’s request for a subpoena, Duncan asked the judge to enter a protective order that would “ensure Woods’ prescription records only be viewed by the State, its law enforcement officers, any State experts, and the Defense.”

“The records shall not be disclosed to any third parties, including Order prohibiting dissemination of the records by the State in response to any public records request,” Duncan wrote. “If and when it becomes necessary for the State to publicly disclose said records or any portion of said records, that a hearing must be held to determine the necessity of said disclosure.”