Cucumbers may be linked to salmonella outbreak in 25 states – National & International News – WED 5Jun2024

Cucumbers may be linked to salmonella outbreak in 25 states.

Texas DA seeks to overturn Gov. Abbott’s pardon of man who murdered protester.

Cucumbers may be linked to salmonella outbreak in 25 states

Two days ago, Florida-based Fresh Start Produce recalled cucumbers it sold in 14 states (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia) due to potential salmonella contamination. The recalled shipments were distributed between May 17 to May 24 to retail distribution centers, wholesalers and food service distributors  in those states. However, following the recall announcement, the CDC stated that “these sellers may have shipped to additional states or repackaged them for stores”. 

The CDC and the FDA are currently investigating whether the cucumbers are linked to an outbreak of Salmonella Africana that began on March 11 and continued through mid-May, resulting in 162 cases of illness and 54 hospitalizations. This outbreak affected 25 states (Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia).

The agencies are also investigating the possibility of a link to a separate recent outbreak of Salmonella Braenderup in 23 states that caused 153 illnesses.

So far, Mississippi has not been a part of the recall or the outbreaks the FDA and CDC are investigating.

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Texas DA seeks to overturn Gov. Abbott’s pardon of man who murdered protester

Last month, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott officially pardoned Daniel Perry, an active-duty US Army sergeant who convicted of the 2020 murder of Garrett Foster, a US Air Force veteran who was pushing his quadruple-amputee girlfriend’s wheelchair at a Black Lives Matter demonstration in Austin, TX. Now, in a move that may be unprecedented, the district attorney who prosecuted Perry is seeking to undo the pardon. 

Travis County DA José Garza has filed a petition with the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the state’s highest criminal court, seeking a writ of mandamus that would overturn Abbott’s pardon. Garza argues that Abbott’s pardon of Perry was unlawful since it pre-empted the appeals process. State governors’ pardons are supposed to come once a convicted felon has exhausted their appeals.

As soon as Perry was convicted last year for murder, Gov. Abbott vowed to pardon him as soon as legally possible. He instructed the state’s Board of Pardon and Paroles to examine Perry’s case. In Texas, governors can only grant pardons upon recommendations from the board. The board issued the recommendation last month and Abbott pardoned Perry the same day.

Texas legal experts say that Garza’s petition is on firm ground legally but likely to fail. The Court of Criminal Appeals’ 9 elected judges are all Republicans. “The choices for them are, ‘I can do the right thing,’ or ‘I can save my job and side with Gov. Abbott,’” said Charlie Baird, a former Texas Court of Appeals associate judge.

Separately, 14 attorneys general have called on the US Department of Justice to open a civil rights investigation against Perry. 

Stand your ground?

Abbott argued that Perry should never have been convicted due to Texas’ stand your ground law. However, those who claim this defense must prove they were acting in self-defense when they fired their weapon. Foster was carrying a AK-47-style rifle at the protest, which is lawful since Texas is an open carry state. Witnesses said that Foster never raised his weapon during the confrontation. Perry was driving for a ride-share service and records show that he sought out areas where protests were occurring, seeking a confrontation. Perry shot Foster several times before driving away. 

DA Garza told reporters at a press conference yesterday that, “The Board of Pardon and Paroles, and the governor, put their politics over justice and make a mockery of our legal system. For that, they should be ashamed of themselves. Their actions were contrary to the law”.

Sheila Foster, Garrett Foster’s mother spoke at the same press conference of her fears that Abbott’s pardon would encourage violence against protesters. “My own child was killed on American soil for doing nothing but practicing his First and Second Amendment rights” Foster said. “And our governor just said, ‘That’s OK, that’s acceptable’.” 

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