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© St. Petersburg Times, published November 3, 2002
More meat recalled over listeria outbreak
WASHINGTON -- A New Jersey company is recalling 200,000 pounds of ready-to-eat chicken and turkey sold nationwide and possibly linked to a listeria outbreak that sickened 50 people and killed seven, the Agriculture Department announced Saturday.
Jack Lambersky Poultry Company Inc., of Camden, N.J., is pulling precooked turkey and chicken products made between June 27 and July 3. It also has halted operations. Tests showed some of the meat contained a listeria strain matching the one that infected people in eight northeastern states, according to the Agriculture Department.
The meat was distributed to retail stores and other institutions across the country. The company does business as J.L. Foods Company Inc.
"Consumers should check their refrigerators and freezers for products involved in this recall and return them to the point of purchase," Dr. Garry L. McKee, administrator of USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service, said in a statement.
Officials at Jack Lambersky Poultry Company are continuing to compile information about the recalled meat, said Kenneth Martin, the general manager for the family owned company. He said the company would release more details today.
Steven Cohen, a spokesman for the Agriculture Department said none of the recalled meat went to the federal school lunch program.
USDA inspectors have been working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to find the cause of the listeria outbreak that began in mid July. The investigation prompted another meat plant, Wampler Foods in Franconia, Pa., to recall 27-million pounds of ready-to-eat poultry meat on Oct. 12 -- the largest recall. Some of that meat had been distributed to schools.
Consumers who have questions about the recall can call the company at 1-800-881-3250. A list of the recalled products is on the Food Safety and Inspection Service Web site: www.fsis.usda.gov/index.htm.
JACKSON, Miss. -- The mother of three of six children who died when a rural mobile home caught fire has been charged with manslaughter and child neglect.
The children, ages 3 to 12, were home alone Oct. 19 when the fire apparently spread from a candle that had been used to light the home, officials said.
District Attorney James Powell said Angela Williams was charged Friday with six counts of manslaughter and seven counts of child neglect and was in custody. Each count of manslaughter has a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. The child neglect charges each carry a maximum penalty of one year and a $1,000 fine.
The mother of the other three children will not be charged.
Where the children's mothers were when the fire broke out has been a key question in the investigation. Powell said Angela Williams, who had been left in charge of the children, was at a bar at the time, the Clarion-Ledger of Jackson reported Saturday.
DETROIT -- The city's campaign to snuff out Halloween arson appears to be working, the mayor said.
With volunteers patrolling streets and authorities imposing a strict curfew, fires reported during the three-night Halloween period dropped 30 percent from last year to 110 cases, Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick said.
The worst year on record was 1984, with 297 arson cases.