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Stewart Parnell was sentenced Monday to 28 years in prison for his role in a nationwide salmonella outbreak that killed nine people and sickened hundreds more in 2008 and 2009.
His food broker brother Michael Parnell was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Wilkerson was sentenced to 5 years.
The two Parnell brothers were taken into custody after the sentencing and not allowed bond. Plant quality assurance manager Mary Wilkerson, however, was allowed bond.
“This has been a several year nightmare. Now I stand before you and ask for forgiveness from you and the victims,” Stewart Parnell told the court Monday before the sentence. “To the victims, I apologize tremendously.”
He, his brother Michael, and Wilkerson were convicted in September 2014 for their roles in the outbreak linked to a peanut plant in Blakely, Georgia.
Stewart Parnell was convicted on 72 counts of fraud, conspiracy and other federal charges for knowingly shipping tainted peanut products that led to a salmonella outbreak in 2008 and 2009.
Wilkerson was convicted of obstruction of justice. She declined to speak during the sentencing.
Michael Parnell was convicted of conspiracy and dozens of counts of fraud, according to a federal indictment.
Character witnesses for Stewart Parnell, the former owner of Peanut Corporation of America, testified on his behalf before the judge handed the sentence down.
His mother, daughter, and son-in-law spoke about his caring and generous spirit in the courtroom.
Parnell’s son-in-law who testified that the former CEO wanted to tell the truth for more than six years, but could not because of lawyers. He also said that Stewart Parnell had not slept for six years because of remorse.
During the trial, however, victims who spoke said they were hurt by his lack of remorse.
Ron Napier talked about his 80-year-old mother Nellie from Ohio, who died on January 26, 2009.
Prosecutors said she was the ninth victim to die from the salmonella outbreak.
Ron said he wanted to come and face Stewart and Michael Parnell, to make sure they heard about his mother’s painful death.
A total of eight people representing the victims and family members spoke in court about how the salmonella outbreak affected them.
More than 700 people were sickened in the outbreak and nine people died, according to the CDC, though it was not certain that each death was due to salmonella poisoning.
The outbreak prompted the largest food recall in U.S. history and cost customers of Peanut Corporation of America (PCA) $144 million.
Agencies/Canadajournal
