A federal judge sentenced Stewart Parnell, owner of the now-defunct Peanut Corp. of America, to 28 years in prison in connection with a salmonella outbreak that killed nine people and sickened hundreds, said the Associated Press, “the stiffest penalty ever handed out to a producer in a food-borne illness case.” Nine victims testified at Parnell’s sentencing in Albany, Georgia. The AP quoted 10-year-old Jacob Hurley as saying, “I think it’s OK for him to spend the rest of his life in prison.” Jurors convicted Parnell last September on charges of knowingly shipping peanut butter that was contaminated with salmonella bacteria and falsifying the results of safety tests.
The judge, W. Louis Sands, said Parnell was driven by the desire to make money. “This is commonly and accurately referred to as greed,” Sands said. Parnell apologized at the hearing, saying he was “humiliated and morally disgraced” by the events. Parnell was convicted of 67 criminal counts that included conspiracy, wire fraud and obstruction of justice.
Parnell’s brother, Michael, a company officer, was sentenced to 20 years in prison and Mary Wilkerson, the quality control manager, was sentenced to five years, said the AP.
Before the sentencing hearing began, the Parnell brothers filed motions asking for them to be released while their cases are appealed, said Food Safety News. The motions “shared at least some of their grounds for appeal,” including the landmark nature of the case with no direct precedent.