US wants egg executives punished for salmonella outbreak

[herding cats]

Source: Associated Press

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A judge should consider the "widespread harm" done by a major 2010 salmonella outbreak and the food safety lapses that preceded it in sentencing two egg industry executives whose company was responsible, prosecutors said Monday.

In punishing them next week, U.S. District Judge Mark Bennett should consider that Austin "Jack" DeCoster and his son Peter ran a massive egg production operation that "routinely disregarded food safety standards and practices," assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Deegan wrote in a sentencing memorandum.

Jack DeCoster, 80, of Turner, Maine, and 51-year-old Peter DeCoster, of Clarion, Iowa are scheduled to be sentenced April 13 by U.S. District Judge Mark Bennett in a federal courtroom in Sioux City, Iowa. Both pleaded guilty last year to introducing adulterated eggs into interstate commerce and face up to one year in jail.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, prosecutors did not ask for a specific term of jail, home confinement or probation. But the 14-page memo outlined illegal and unethical food safety practices that repeatedly happened on their watch, and argued the sentences should send a message to other corporate executives to "act responsibly when it comes to food safety."

Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/687f5f00e6b043babc6d068f1f236a64/prosecutors-widespread-harm-caused-salmonella-outbreak

[Dr Hobbitstein]

1. This is eggselent news...

The US should really hard boil these yolks!

[forest444]

7. Yup. If corporate America's foibles could be boiled down to one thing,

it would be that 'you make an omelet, you break a few eggs' attitude of theirs.

[Omaha Steve]

2. UP to one year in jail???

As long as they get tainted eggs every meal, I'm ok with that.

[Major Nikon]

6. Two cantaloupe farmers got zero jail time for killing 33 people

They were fined $150,000 and given 100 hours of community service.

These guys gave a couple thousand or so a case of the shits with zero deaths, and they've already paid $6.8 million. I'd be surprised if they get any jail time, not that they don't deserve it.

[MannyGoldstein]

3. They need to charter a bank, quick!

Could be their only hope to stay out of jail.

[Bossy Monkey]

4. Well they SAID it's "the incredible, edible egg"!

Is it their fault that we don't know what "incredible" means?

[Overseas]

5. K&R. ignored food safety standards and warnings. Tried bribing an inspector.

[BrotherIvan]

8. More please!

People die when greedheads mess with the food supply. And rivers are contaminated. And mines blow up. That's as bad as sticking up a liquor store with a gun IMHO.

[ErikJ]

9. Who needs regulations? The Free Market will take care of it.

After they kill 100's of people and ruin the market for everybody else.

[Fortinbras Armstrong]

10. I used to know a libertarian who spouted

Exactly that line, quite seriously. He was the man who made me believe that libertarianism requires ignorance of history, economics, government and how the real world works.