People v. Florendo

On July 10, 1979, the circuit court of Cook County found defendant, Dr. Regalado Florendo, in contempt of court for failure to comply with a subpoena, duces tecum issued by the March 1979 grand jury. The court ordered defendant incarcerated until he purged himself of contempt and then stayed the order pending appeal. The appellate court affirmed (95 Ill. App. 3d 601), and we granted the defendant leave to appeal.

The primary issue for review is whether disclosure of a patient’s identity, pursuant to a grand jury subpoena, violates the physician-patient privilege.

On February 21, 1979, the grand…