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Court Upholds Jail Time for DeCosters in Salmonella Outbreak

A federal appeals court has upheld jail sentences for egg industry executive Jack DeCoster and his son, Peter, whose Iowa company caused a nationwide salmonella outbreak in 2010.

The DeCosters were originally sentenced to three months in jail for what U.S. District Judge Mark Bennett called a “litany of shameful conduct” that occurred at their Iowa egg production company. But they were allowed their freedom while they appealed their sentences. They argued, and business groups agreed, that the sentences were unreasonable and unconstitutional.

More than 1,900 illnesses were linked to the 2010 salmonella outbreak traced to their farm, but officials say thousands of more people may also have been affected. Jack DeCoster previously ran the former DeCoster egg farm in Turner, a massive operation repeatedly cited for health, safety, labor and other violations over many years.

On Wednesday, in a 2-1 decision, the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals backed their jail sentences, ruling that the DeCosters “are liable for failing to prevent the salmonella outbreak.”