Noelle Bush, 25, kissed her aunt Dorothy Koch before a sheriff's deputy grabbed her hands behind her back and cuffed them. Before she was sentenced, Bush apologized to Circuit Judge Reginald Whitehead. "I sincerely apologize for what happened and promise to do well at the Center for Drug-Free Living,'' Bush said, referring to the treatment center where she has been staying. Whitehead told Bush he was sending her to jail because he was aware allegations that she was found with crack cocaine in her shoe while at the treatment center. Bush's attorney had asked for leniency. "I would ask on Noelle's behalf that the sanctions imposed be in the mildest form," Peter Antonacci said. "Although these are serious allegations, we know that she has passed all of her tests." Whitehead told Bush that he was disappointed in her but he added he believed she could complete drug treatment successfully and was allowing her to stay in the program.

"I want you to have some time to think and reflect on this,'' Whitehead said. "You should be disappointed that you let yourself down.'' The judge added that she hoped Bush learned a lesson. "You have to learn from your mistake,'' he said. "This is a great opportunity for yourself to see if you can do well.'' Bush was placed in the drug court system after she was accused of trying to use a fake prescription to buy the anti-anxiety drug Xanax in Tallahassee in January. The president's niece has been undergoing treatment at the treatment center since February as an alternative to going through the traditional criminal justice system. Thursday's hearing was to determine if she could stay in her program or whether she would be returned to the regular criminal justice system for violating rules in the drug treatment program. Earlier this week, Whitehead had rejected a request from Bush's attorneys that the press and public be banned from her drug court proceedings. Her attorneys had argued that the governor's daughter had an expectation of privacy when it came to discussing her treatment progress during twice-a-month hearings with a judge.

Her attorneys said that drug courts are different from criminal courts and not subject to the same openness since they are oriented toward treating the addict rather than being punitive. Attorneys for the Orlando Sentinel and the South Florida Sun-Sentinel had argued that drug courts were no different from criminal courts and subject to the same openness. Whitehead agreed. Bush was sent to jail for two days in July after center workers found her with unauthorized prescription pills. Last month, a caller told Orlando police that Bush had a rock of crack cocaine in a shoe, but another judge later ruled that workers at the center cannot be forced to testify about Bush's case. In interviews this week, the governor said that his daughter's battle with drugs has strained his family but he accepted the judge's decision. The governor was not at Thursday's hearing. Noelle Bush was sentenced on the same day her uncle, President Bush, was scheduled to visit Florida to discuss education at a New Smyrna Beach elementary school and hold a fund raiser for his brother's re-election campaign. Watch Local 6 News for the latest on this story.

Previous Stories:

• October 16, 2002: Judge Rules Noelle Bush's Hearing Cannot Be Closed
• October 8, 2002: Judge Decides Whether To Close Noelle Bush's Court Proceedings
• October 6, 2002: Noelle Bush's Lawyers Ask Judge To Close Hearings
• September 10, 2002: Police: Noelle Bush Caught With Cocaine
• July 20, 2002: Noelle Bush Released From Jail
• July 17, 2002: Gov. Jeb Bush's Daughter Jailed