News Channel 8 report

TAMPA - A prosecutor and defense attorney stood in court on Monday to say they could not come to a pre-trial deal in the case of Debra Lafave, the Greco Middle School teacher accused of having sex with her 14-year-old student.

``Negotiations have broken off and now it's going to trial,'' defense attorney John Fitzgibbons said after the hearing. ``It's time to tee it up.''

Judge Wayne Timmerman set a trial date for Dec. 5. The trial is expected to last about two weeks.

If convicted, Lafave, 24, could face up to 15 years in prison on each of two charges of lewd and lascivious battery.

Fitzgibbons said the prosecution's plea deal involved ``significant prison time'' and he found that unacceptable.

``To place Debbie into a Florida state women's penitentiary, to place an attractive young woman in that kind of hell hole, is like putting a piece of raw meat in with the lions,'' Fitzgibbons said.

Assistant State Attorney Mike Sinacore said his office worked with the family of the victim to determine what would and what would not be offered in the plea deal.

Neither side would provide specifics on what the offer included.

According to court records, witnesses told investigators that Lafave's relationship with her teenage student grew flirtatious as the 2003-2004 school year wound down. That summer, they kept in contact.

Police say Lafave had sex with the student in her Riverview townhouse and again in the portable classroom where she taught English.

During a trip to Ocala, the teen's aunt saw the pair and called his mother. He leveled with his mother and she called police. Lafave was arrested on June 21, 2004, after several phone calls between her and the teen were monitored.

She faces similar charges in Ocala.

Reporter Thomas W. Krause can be reached at (813) 259-7698.