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MORGAN — The former drill team instructor of Morgan High School, who had been on the job less than four months, has pleaded guilty to drug possession.
Last week, Josie Foster, 34, accepted a plea in abeyance, originally pleading guilty to burglary, a second-degree felony; and possession of a controlled substance, which was amended from a second- to third-degree felony. In exchange for her guilty pleas, two counts of theft were dismissed.
In order for Foster to qualify for a drug program, however, attorneys agreed to change her burglary charge to a second count of possession of a controlled substance.
In exchange for her guilty pleas, Foster avoided prison time, being sentenced instead to 18 months probation. She was also ordered to complete the Drug Diversion program in Weber County.
In one of the cases, a drill team dancer had prescription medications taken out of her gym bag. In another case, a theft was reported at a home where the drill team had held a party the night before in which Foster was present, said Morgan County Attorney Jann Farris.
Foster was accused of breaking into homes and stealing prescription drugs. What broke the case for the Morgan County Sheriff's Office was when a detective figured out the common denominator in many of the crimes was that the victim had a daughter who was a member of the drill team.
In one of the cases, a drill team dancer had prescription medications taken out of her gym bag. In another case, a theft was reported at a home where the drill team had held a party the night before in which Foster was present, said Morgan County Attorney Jann Farris.
But Foster's most common method was driving to a drill team member's home, park her car outside the home and call, Farris said.
"She would call and ask, 'Are you guys home?' If they said, 'No,' she'd enter their home. If they said, 'Yes,' she'd just say she was coming over to do measurements for drill team members," he said.
Farris added that Foster did not randomly select homes to burglarize. Because Morgan is a small community and there are close-knit neighborhoods, Farris said Foster knew when a dancer's family member had had surgery and prescription drugs.
Her charges are for incidents that happened on Oct. 17. But Farris said investigators believed Foster's crimes have been going on for over a year, starting before she was the drill team coach. Farris said she was accused of burglarizing her neighbor's homes about a year ago. The home break-ins picked up again over the past three or four months, Farris said.
Foster, who was hired on Aug. 8 as the part-time drill team coach, had been on administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation. She was officially fired from the Morgan School District after entering her guilty pleas on Dec. 8. She was arrested Nov. 29 for investigation of two counts of burglary and two counts of theft.
Farris added that Foster did not randomly select homes to burglarize. Because Morgan is a small community and there are close-knit neighborhoods, Farris said Foster knew when a dancer's family member had had surgery and prescription drugs.
Also as part of the plea agreement, Foster submitted a list of names of victims in exchange for prosecutors agreeing not to file any new charges. The list included about 10 names, including family members of four or five members of her drill team, Farris said.
At least one of the names was of a person Farris did not recognize as being a Morgan County resident.
On Dec. 6, Foster was charged with burglary and theft for incidents that took place on Oct. 21 and Oct. 28. A motion to dismiss those additional charges was filed on the day she accepted her plea in abeyance.
But if Foster does not complete drug court, Farris said he had the option of reopening all of the other cases he did not file.
Because Foster did not have a prior criminal record, he said she was offered drug court and plea in abeyance like anyone else.
"The stakes are really high if she fails," Farris said. "I really hope she succeeds for her family's sake."
Farris said the case has also been one of the most polarizing ones that Morgan has seen in a long time, with many rumors being spread around the county about what Foster did and did not do.
"In the five years I've been county attorney, I can't think of a more polarizing case," he said. "She has a lot of very close friends."
Email:preavy@ksl.com
