STATE ATTORNEY TAKES ON JUDGE OVER DRUG RULINGS

TAMPA - The Hillsborough County State Attorney's Office will challenge the
decisions of a circuit court judge in three separate drug related cases in
which stiffer sentences were not handed down despite repeat violations by
the defendants.

Robin Fuson, head of the state attorney's narcotics division, said Monday
he will appeal the recent rulings by Circuit Judge Florence Foster.

"This is the first time I will file appeals on dismissal of affidavits for
violation of probation," Fuson said.

Foster, who said it was not unusual for attorneys to appeal a judge's
decisions, declined to comment.

According to court files, three defendants charged with crimes ranging from
trafficking in cocaine to carrying concealed weapons violated probation
sentences handed down by Foster over the past three years.