Miami to face court proceedings for violating a sentence.

Paediatrician George Miller, who was sentenced to two years community service in Florida for sexual charges relating to a 15-year-old girl, has been on $10,000 bail in Bermuda since October when the US authorities began extradition proceedings to have him sent back.

Senior Magistrate Will Francis heard yesterday that Dr. Miller had chosen to waive the extradition proceedings and return to Florida voluntarily.

It was also revealed that Department of Public Prosecutions has chosen to drop any potential local charges in the interest of getting him back to the US "without delay''.

Crown counsel Patrick Dougherty explained to the court that the two Federal Marshals would arrive on the Island today and will leave tomorrow when they will escort the paediatrician back to Miami with his wife.

Dr. Miller had practised paediatrics for two years in Bermuda before his arrest last October.

He had been on the Island since 1997, subsequent to fleeing Florida after serving only one month of his sentence. The sentence was imposed after he admitted to the sexual battery of a minor, the person who has since become his wife.

He was arrested by Police in October when the US Consul General's Office discovered he was living here and immediately asked the Governor that a provisional warrant of arrest be taken out on him.

At the time, Consul General Larry Owen pointed out that breaching a sentence was taken very seriously in the US and could result in sentences of up to 30 years on each count.

Local charges relating to Immigration offences were also expected to be laid against the doctor.

However, Mr. Dougherty told The Royal Gazette yesterday that the DPP had decided not to proceed with these matters so as not to delay Dr. Miller's court date in the US.

"Given the seriousness of the charges he is facing in the US, we decided that not proceeding with the charges here would be the best thing to do,'' Mr.

Dougherty explained.

"It's simply a matter of courtesy for the American Government.

"He breached a court order and they view his offence as very serious. We didn't want to delay them dealing with it because of our courts dealing with charges here.'' A spokeswoman for the US Consulate General agreed that Dr. Miller's offences were viewed as "extremely serious'' by the US authorities.

And she explained that Dr. Miller was being escorted back by federal agents because his appearance in the Florida court needed to be guaranteed.

"The agents are coming simply to make sure that Dr. Miller turns up for court proceedings in the US,'' she said. "He will be escorted back to Miami and then turned over to the local police.'' Dr. George Miller