Oral arguments were heard first thing Thursday morning in Atlanta at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit.
A three-judge panel heard back-to-back oral arguments on behalf of Michael and Stewart Parnell. Attorneys for each were given 15 minutes to make their case, and equal time was spent with a government attorney for rebuttals.
The brothers, associated with a deadly Salmonella outbreak blamed on the now-defunct Peanut Corporation of America, filed motions for the vacation of their convictions and sentences under federal Habeas Corpus proceedings.
The three-judge panel hearing the oral arguments included Chief Judge William H. Pryor Jr., Judge Robert J. Luck, and Senior Judge Edward Earl Carnes.
Oral arguments, which include interruptions anytime one of the judges wants to make a statement ask a lawyer a question, get fairly complex.
Savannah attorney Amy Lee Copeland, who represents Stewart Parnell, and Virginia attorney Elliott M. Harding for Michael Parnell tried to use their time to make all their arguments effectively.
The attorneys’ argument is that the Parnells’ Constitutional rights were violated because of ineffective counsel during their 2014 jury trial.
They also argue that their trial attorneys should have sought a venue change, moving the trial from Albany, GA. Also, improper jury conduct has been alleged because some jurors knew that deaths were involved.
The three-judge panel touched on all these subjects and the precedents that went with them.
Stewart Parnell, 70, and Michael Parnell, 65, were absent for the oral arguments. Both are federal inmates at the same Butner, NC, federal prison known as “Butner Low.” It is a low-security facility for less than 1,000 inmates.
The brothers appealed to the 11th Circuit after the Middle District of Georgia, the same court that convicted and sentenced them in 2014, denied their motions.
In 2008-09, the Peanut Corporation of America’s (PCA’s) Georgia peanut processing plant was the source of a multi-state Salmonella outbreak that sickened thousands and resulted in numerous deaths. PCA peanut butter and paste subsequently required the recall of thousands of products.
A four-year investigation, led by the FBI, followed and resulted in criminal indictments against both of the Parnell brothers. On Feb. 15, 2013, an Albany, GA, jury found Stewart Parnell guilty of all but one of the 68 felony counts with which he was charged.
He was convicted of conspiracy, mail and wire fraud, selling misbranded food, and introducing adulterated food into interstate commerce. Michael Parnell was also found guilty but on fewer counts.
At the time of the outbreak, Stewart was PCA’s president, while Michael was associated as a peanut broker.
If successful with their Habeas Corpus motions, Stewart Parnell’s sentence could be shaved by 14 years, and Michael Parnell’s sentence could be cut by the seven remaining years.
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