A federal judge was weighing Thursday whether the Drug Enforcement Administration can access a Utah prescription-drug database without a warrant in a lawsuit that pits the right to privacy against the need to combat the country's opioid-drug epidemic. "I think this is a fascinating case," said U.S. District Judge David Nuffer, who's considering whether to follow another judge's recommendation that sided with the DEA. The agency is fighting to be exempt from a Utah law that requires investigators to get a warrant to search the database. The DEA says it's an important tool early in their investigations. ... Utah's law was passed after two firefighters said they were wrongly charged with prescription drug fraud after a wide-ranging search of the database in an investigation into ambulance drug thefts.