WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Rush Limbaugh will not face charges in Palm Beach County for the bottle of Viagra found in his luggage that was prescribed in his psychologist's name, prosecutors said Wednesday.
Charges could have nullified the conservative radio host's plea agreement in a "doctor shopping" case.
Limbaugh, 55, was detained for more than three hours at Palm Beach International Airport on June 26 after he returned on his private plane from a vacation in the Dominican Republic.
The state attorney's office said the medication was prescribed by Limbaugh's cardiologist, Dr. Steven Schnur, to Limbaugh's psychologist and addiction counselor, Steve Strumwasser. Strumwasser then provided the Viagra to Limbaugh, said state attorney spokesman Mike Edmondson.
Strumwasser told authorities he "agreed to have his name on the label in an effort to avoid potentially embarrassing publicity for the suspect," according to the state attorney's office filing. "Thus, the medication contained in the subject pill bottle was legitimately prescribed to the suspect by his physician."
So, in summary, the state attorney's office is saying that Rush broke no laws.
But that won't stop the media from holding out hope that he'll get charged with something, anything:
It is generally not illegal under Florida law for a physician to prescribe medication in a third party's name if all parties are aware and the doctor documents it correctly, Edmondson said.
However, since the doctor wrote the prescription in Miami-Dade County, the case was forwarded to prosecutors there for review. The Miami-Dade state attorney's office had no immediate comment.
What's sad here is despite the fact that Rush broke no laws he still got his name dragged through the mud by the media and had some private medical details (his prescription for Viagra) exposed to the public.
That's pathetic.