Oregon Dismisses Del Monte Complaint
The Oregon Government Ethics Commission has dismissed a complaint filed in August by Del Monte Fresh Produce against the state’s senior epidemiologist William Keene.
The seven-member citizen commission charged with enforcing government ethics laws said the issues outlined in Del Monte’s complaint fall outside its mandate to ensure that public office is not used for personal gain, according to a story in The Oregonian.
Del Monte did not allege in the complaint that Keene used his office for personal gain, but rather that he conducted a “cursory investigation” and committed a “clear error of judgment,” in concluding that tainted cantaloupe was source of a Salmonella outbreak, according to the story.
Keene and was one of several state and federal scientists who concluded that the tainted cantaloupe came from Del Monte’s facility in Asuncion Mita, Guatemala. The company maintains its cantaloupes were not the source of the outbreak and that none ever tested positive for Salmonella Panama, the strain involved in the outbreak.
In addition to the ethics complaint, Del Monte filed a tort claim in August announcing its intentions to sue the Oregon Health Authority over the outbreak.
News source: http://www.oregonlive.com/health/index.ssf/2011/09/oregon_dismisses_ethics_compla.html
