U.S Peanut exec gets 28 year jail term for salmonella poisoning

By Caribbean Medical News Staff
The former head of Peanut Corporation of America Stewart Parnell, received an unprecedented 28 year life sentence following his 2014 conviction on crimes related to a salmonella outbreak which was responsible for the deaths of nine people and made hundreds ill. The illnesses began in January 2009 and ultimately prompted one of the largest food recalls in U.S. history.
U.S. District Judge W. Louis Sands sentenced the 61-year-old former executive to serve 28 years in jail; thus making it one of the harshest sentences in the history of the United States for a producer in a case of that nature. Judge Sands also sentenced the former executive’s brother, Michael Parnell, 56, to serve 20 years in prison. Stewart Parnell’s brother was a broker who provided food manufacturing giant Kellogg’s with peanut paste from his brother’s establishment.
Also receiving a 5 year sentence was Mary Wilkerson, 41, who was the former quality control manager at company. She was convicted on obstruction in the catastrophe. According to reports the FDA and CDC traced a national salmonella outbreak to the Parnell Company’s peanut roasting plant in Blakely, Ga. Over 700 people were made sick and nine deaths reported over 46 states the CDC says.
A federal jury convicted Parnell last September on 71 criminal counts, including conspiracy, obstruction of justice and introduction of adulterated food. The verdict was based on credible evidence from the prosecution which suggests that Parnell and the co-defendants knowingly shipped salmonella-tainted peanut butter from the Georgia facility to Kellogg’s and other customers.
Roaches, evidence of rodents and a leaking roof and other evidence of an atmosphere for breeding salmonella were also present. The prosecution established that e-mails and records confirmed that lab tests showed that the products shipped had salmonella and that the same were knowingly shipped to customers.
The reports also suggest that while other peanut batches were never tested, fake lab results stating that the products were salmonella free were nonetheless shipped with fake lab records saying salmonella screenings were negative.
In a court order filed on Friday, Sands wrote that prosecutors had met the legal standard proving that Parnell and Wilkerson should be held accountable for harming more than 250 victims. Michael Parnell should be held accountable for injuring more than 50 victims, Sands ruled.
Additionally, the judge wrote that “Parnell and Wilkerson should bear responsibility for just under $200 million in losses. Michael Parnell should bear responsibility for just under $50 million in losses”, Sands ruled.