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Key Salmonella Lawsuit Settled
By PHIL RAY
POSTED: November 29, 2007
A key lawsuit in the Sheetz Inc. bad tomato case has been settled out-of-court, according to an order issued by Blair County, Pa., President Judge Jolene G. Kopriva.
Widespread illness resulting from consumption of salmonella-tainted tomatoes sold at Sheetz stores led to the closing of Wheeling-based Coronet Foods Inc. in 2004. Coronet had supplied the tomatoes to the Sheetz chain.
Both Coronet and Sheetz have been cleared by federal investigators as the source of the contamination; however, both companies still can be sued by those who became ill because both companies distributed the contaminated food.
Sheetz has filed a lawsuit against Coronet, which, in turn, is seeking damages from its suppliers.
Altoona, Pa., resident Max Christian Anslinger filed a lawsuit against the convenience store chain after he became sick on what he claimed were tainted tomatoes in food he purchased at an Altoona Sheetz store in July 2004.
As it turned out, hundreds of customers in several states complained about the Roma tomatoes Altoona-based Sheetz received primarily from Coronet Foods of Wheeling.
An investigation by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture determined the tomatoes alleged to have caused the illnesses were tainted with salmonella from July 3-9, 2004.
Anslinger filed a lawsuit in Blair County, stating he became so ill from the tomatoes that he was hospitalized.
Several other lawsuits were filed in nearby counties, and Coronet and other distributors of the tomatoes brought other parties into the lawsuit, including the farmers who grew the fruit.
All legal actions against Sheetz were transferred to Blair County, and Kopriva was to dispose of major legal issues, particularly who should be involved in the case. In August, Kopriva dismissed civil charges against eight of the other parties attached to the case, basically leaving Coronet and Sheetz as the major protagonists.
Sheetz has sued Coronet for lost profits because of the tainted tomatoes.
Kopriva said there was no evidence to charge other distributors or the growers with contaminating the tomatoes. Kopriva’s August ruling also cleared the way to settle lawsuits filed by customers who became ill.
Sheetz has asked Pennsylvania’s Superior Court to review Kopriva’s ruling, said company attorney Gary Zimmerman.
Kopriva stated in an order filed last week that the Anslinger case has been settled out of court. Zimmerman confirmed the settlement Monday but said the amount was confidential.
As part of the order, Kopriva also transferred the cases of other individual customers to the counties where the lawsuits originally were filed. She said those lawsuits will proceed through the local court systems until they are settled or brought to trial.
The remaining suit in Blair County is Sheetz vs. Coronet. Zimmerman estimates that the Coronet case will be tried in Blair County in the latter half of 2008.
Widespread illness resulting from consumption of salmonella-tainted tomatoes sold at Sheetz stores led to the closing of Wheeling-based Coronet Foods Inc. in 2004. Coronet had supplied the tomatoes to the Sheetz chain.
Both Coronet and Sheetz have been cleared by federal investigators as the source of the contamination; however, both companies still can be sued by those who became ill because both companies distributed the contaminated food.
Sheetz has filed a lawsuit against Coronet, which, in turn, is seeking damages from its suppliers.
Altoona, Pa., resident Max Christian Anslinger filed a lawsuit against the convenience store chain after he became sick on what he claimed were tainted tomatoes in food he purchased at an Altoona Sheetz store in July 2004.
As it turned out, hundreds of customers in several states complained about the Roma tomatoes Altoona-based Sheetz received primarily from Coronet Foods of Wheeling.
An investigation by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture determined the tomatoes alleged to have caused the illnesses were tainted with salmonella from July 3-9, 2004.
Anslinger filed a lawsuit in Blair County, stating he became so ill from the tomatoes that he was hospitalized.
Several other lawsuits were filed in nearby counties, and Coronet and other distributors of the tomatoes brought other parties into the lawsuit, including the farmers who grew the fruit.
All legal actions against Sheetz were transferred to Blair County, and Kopriva was to dispose of major legal issues, particularly who should be involved in the case. In August, Kopriva dismissed civil charges against eight of the other parties attached to the case, basically leaving Coronet and Sheetz as the major protagonists.
Sheetz has sued Coronet for lost profits because of the tainted tomatoes.
Kopriva said there was no evidence to charge other distributors or the growers with contaminating the tomatoes. Kopriva’s August ruling also cleared the way to settle lawsuits filed by customers who became ill.
Sheetz has asked Pennsylvania’s Superior Court to review Kopriva’s ruling, said company attorney Gary Zimmerman.
Kopriva stated in an order filed last week that the Anslinger case has been settled out of court. Zimmerman confirmed the settlement Monday but said the amount was confidential.
As part of the order, Kopriva also transferred the cases of other individual customers to the counties where the lawsuits originally were filed. She said those lawsuits will proceed through the local court systems until they are settled or brought to trial.
The remaining suit in Blair County is Sheetz vs. Coronet. Zimmerman estimates that the Coronet case will be tried in Blair County in the latter half of 2008.
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