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According to a published report by the Associated Press yesterday, Paul Seelig, (the man who sold bread with a false gluten free label) was sentenced to 9 years in prison. Paul is the owner of Great Specialty Bread Company. He was investigated by North Carolina state authorities after many people buying his bread turned up getting sick. He was charged and convicted of 23 counts of fraud.
A few weeks ago, there was a big to do about a chef who was bragging about serving patrons gluten despite their requests for gluten free foods.
Now we have another example of a company trying to profit in an unethical manor and without regard for the health of his customers. Fortunately, the legal system took appropriate action and made an example of this man. This example will hopefully help other unethical business owners take gluten free more seriously.
What do you think? Was his sentence too harsh? Was is not harsh enough? Was it appropriate? Leave me your comments below…
In Good Health,
Dr. Osborne – AKA the Gluten Free Warrior
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12 Responses
Totally agreed with the sentence. That’s not fraud, that’s assault. If I poisoned someone intentionally? Yeah, 9 years sounds about right.
I think he should have been forced to continue baking under the supervision of someone gluten-intolerant paid for by his earnings. All his injured customers should receive free product. Then 50% of his earnings should have been distributed to those injured parties for a period of ten years. Let him live on the other 50%.
It’s time we stopped incarcerating such criminals and started putting them to work to remunerate those they have harmed.
This is as if he were purposely adding salmonella to his product. Some will get sick, some won’t. I think that the punishment is good. Make an example of him. Man, who can we trust??
Ok, I agree this man should be punished, but why are the companies producing cigarettes, junk food, genetically manipulated fruit and vegetables and all other products that have been proven to make people sick not punished. Let’s not be prejudice towards a very small bakery business, concentrate on the big guys earning millions of dollars making the human race unhealthy and enabling the medical industry to earn billions of dollars on useless treatments and medications.
Should be a yr. for each person he poisoned. He got off easy w/ only 9yrs.
Also I agree that cigarette companies should be punished, but their punishment has been meted out over time for a while, and that process continues.
A lot of ppl would probably be up in arms if we tried to curtail the production of junk food, or punish the producers. Ppl have a right to do to and for their own bodies. The cigarettes impinge on the rights of others to breathe clean air, so smokers are doing to the bodies of others as well as their own, and should be punished w/ higher taxes on thier cigarettes and higher health insurance premiums, etc. That just makes sense, because then non-smokers wouldn’t be financially at risk for the folly of the smokers who make themselves sick w/ smoking.
People who genetically manipulate our foods should have to sell those foods very seperately, so that people know exactly what their getting, and those who buy those foods should be treated like smokers and those who sell it should simply be taxed into non-existance. Production should be expensive and strictly regulated so that it becomes more hassle than it’s worth, but I’m sure that these large companies will continue to find tax loopholes, because they are rich and shameless and becoming more so all the time, because they have enough money to come out smelling like roses when they see legal trouble coming, and often that involves lining the pockets of their favorite politicians.
Leslie, the difference is that this guy lied to people who are trying to make wise food choices. If folks in this free country choose to destroy their health by smoking and eating sugar, so be it as long as they are adults. This is a totally different situation. This is dangerous health fraud, not dangerous health stupid-decision-making. The GMO issue edges closer to health fraud, if food is not labled.
RIGHT ON, LESLIE… AGREE 100 % !
Hmm I think the above comment about food industrys needing to be locked up is not alone the same lines and totally out of place, people have made their choice to stuff their faces with fatty fast food, wheras a gluten intolerant person hasnt been given a choice when they are given bread that is under the premise of being gluten free, what will follow after that from my personal experience is a night of stomach pain like a stabbing sensation, lack of sleep having to get up for work sleep deprivated and being snappy and irritable and not a nice person to be around for the remainder of the day, and if Im really lucky lots of throwing up. So yes this baker deserves his sentence, and I hope he learns something from this experience. I am 25 years old and did not choose to become gluten intolerant overnight in the middle of my uni degree and it frustrates me how some people are so ignorant.
I totally agree that anyone that is knowingly sabotaging my health, should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law, including the lowlife stupid chef that bragged on Facebook. I have worked too long, and too hard, to try and restore my health, to have someone undermine my serious attempts.
BECAUSE OF MY PHYSICAL CONDITION DUE TO CELIAC DISEASE, I WOULD TAKE IT AS A THREAT TO MY LIFE. SEIZURES DUE TO CELIAC DISEASE IS NOT FUN AND I CONDISIDER THIS TO BE THE SAME AS ATTEMPTED MURDER, SO YES, HE DESERVES TO BE IN JAIL. HE SHOULD ALSO TAKE CLASSES ON WHY GLUTEN IS A DANGER TO US WHO HAVE CELIAC DISEASE AND THE COMPLICATIONS IT CAUSES TO THE POINT OF DEATH FOR SOME. PLEASE TEACH THIS MAN THE DANGERS OF GLUTEN AND WHEAT.
Every exposure to gluten increases someone with Celiac’s risk of intestinal cancer, miscarriage, fractured vertebra due to osteoporosis, etc. This is NOT a minor offense. His action could have life threatening consequences in addition to the more immediate physical distress. He lied, he deceived, he deliberately caused bodily harm while assuring his customers that his product was safe for them. Nine years was not enough!
Yeah, excellent punishment, but to be honest, I would double it – or even more… as someone said, it’s a threat to life, no, I’ve changed my mind, if he was doing it intentionally, he should of sentenced to life.