b. 1977
Noelle Bush is the daughter of Florida Governor Jeb Bush, the niece of President George W. Bush, and the granddaughter of President George H. W. Bush. Noelle was briefly an art student at Miami-Dade Community College. She graduated from Tallahassee Community College in 2000 and attended Florida State University in 2001.
Noelle has found her way into the public spotlight as a frequent visitor to the police blotter. Her repeated drug violations have highlighted the two-tiered justice system in America and the hypocrisy of those who lead the war on drugs - especially those in her own family.
On January 29, 2002 Noelle was arrested trying to illegally obtain Xanax at a Tallahassee Walgreens using a forged prescription. She was charged with fraudulently obtaining a controlled substance and released pending a court appearance. Drug prescription fraud is a felony punishable by a prison term of five years and a $5,000 fine. Instead, Noelle was ordered by the court to a drug rehab program in Orlando.
In July 2002, while in rehab, Noelle was caught stealing pills from a nurse's office. She was not thrown out of the rehab program and forced to face the original charge, but did have to spend three days in jail.
In September 2002, still in rehab, Noelle was caught by staff members with .2 grams of cocaine in her shoe - her third drug offense in less than a year. Like the felony prescription offense, posession of less than 10 grams of cocaine is a third-degree felony punishable by a prison term of five years and a $5,000 fine. Staff members were ordered not to cooperate with police and, lacking a statement from staffers, the police didn't have probable cause to arrest Noelle - though the matter remains under investigation.
As Governor, Noelle's father has cut the budgets of Florida's drug treatment and drug court programs. He has also vehemently opposed a proposed ballot initiative that would send 10,000 nonviolent drug offenders into treatment instead of jail.
Those who live in public housing (Governor's mansions apparently excluded) can be evicted if any household member or guest is found using drugs - even if the offense occurs at some other location. College students with drug offenses lose their federal financial aid. And they will go through life with a criminal record. Of course all these drug war rules are aimed at the poor and powerless. The rich have no need of financial aid, they don't live in public housing, (except Governor's Mansions), and though it is the standard policy of Noelle's treatment center to turn drug offenders over to the police - in her case they tore up the sworn statement incriminating her. Ah, it's good to be the king - or the daughter of one.
Of course Governor Jeb isn't the only drug-war hypocrite in the Bush family. While running for President, candidate George W. Bush declared that medical marijuana was a states' rights issue. "I believe," he said, "each state can choose that decision as they so choose." But once he became President, Bush sent John Ashcroft on a crusade against medical marijuana, using federal laws to arrest and harass the terminally ill even in states (like California) where medical marijuana is legal.
Sources:
http://www.cnn.com/2002/LAW/07/19/noelle.bush/
http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/2002-09-10/usw_noelle_bush.asp
http://story.news.yahoo.com
http://www.salon.com/news/col/huff/2002/09/16/war_on_drugs/index.html
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