Dive Brief:
- Samuel Lightsey, a former plant manager for the Peanut Corporation of America, pleaded guilty to all charges related to a salmonella outbreak in which nine people died and some 700 were sickened.
- Lightsey, who had earlier pleaded not guilty, reached a deal with prosecutors that will limit his time in prison to a maximum of six years. Lightsey joins Daniel Kilgore, another former executive at Peanut Corporation, who has pleaded guilty.
- Lightsey and Kilgore are expected to testify against three other executives charged in connection with the outbreak.
Dive Insight:
Salmonella is a nasty business. But the case involving the Peanut Corporation of America is far nastier than usual. The typical outbreak of a foodborne illness involves a mistake of some kind. But in this case, the FBI believes that executives didn't sicken anyone by mistake, but instead conspired to ship a product they knew was contaminated.
