Judge orders Tiger Woods' prescription records released to prosecutors

A Florida judge has decided that golfer Tiger Woods' prescription records need to be turned over to prosecutors as part of a DUI-related case against the 15-time major champion.

Martin County judge Darren Steele issued the order in a brief hearing on Tuesday, May 12, agreeing with prosecutors that the state had a compelling interest in the information.

Woods' attorney had argued the order violated Woods' right to privacy.

The golf superstar, 50, was arrested in Jupiter Island March 27 after authorities say his Land Rover clipped the back of a trailer from behind in a residential neighborhood and then tipped over. Authorities suspected he was impaired by medications, not alcohol, after evaluating him on the scene.

During field sobriety exercises, investigators noticed Woods' eyes were glassy and bloodshot, and his pupils "extremely dialated," records show. Two hydrocodone pills were also found in his pants pockets. Hydrocodone is a prescribed opioid painkiller.

Woods' attorney Douglas Duncan requested as part of the order issuing the subpoena it include "the records obtained by the state can be shared by their law enforcement people, their experts, shared with me and no one else."

Steele granted the subpoena with the stipulation.

Last month, a judge approved Woods’ request to travel out of the country to start "comprehensive inpatient treatment" following the DUI-related arrest, according to court records.

"Based upon the Defendant's treating physician, the out of country treatment facility recommendation is based upon the Defendant's complex clinical presentation and the urgent need for a level of care that cannot safely or effectively be done within the United States, as his privacy has been repeatedly compromised," Duncan wrote in the motion.

A few days later, his private jet was spotted landing in Switzerland, signaling a possible location for his treatment.