Marler Clark Files First Lawsuit in Salmonella Outbreak Linked to Papa Murphy’s Cookie Dough

Seattle, WA – Today Marler Clark filed a Salmonella lawsuit against Papa Murphy’s, representing Michael Williams and Renee Sanders who were victims of an outbreak linked to Chocolate Chip Cookie and S’mores Bar dough. (See complaint below) The CDC reported that this outbreak sickened 26 people in six states: California (2), Idaho (5), Missouri (1), Oregon (8), Utah (4), and Washington (6), illnesses began on dates ranging from February 24, 2023, to May 28, 2023. In response to this investigation, Papa Murphy’s notified franchise owners nationwide and stopped selling all Chocolate Chip Cookie dough and S’mores Bars dough at all stores.

In March 2023, Michael Williams and Renne Sanders visited the Papa Murphy’s restaurant located at 2500 S Santiam Hwy, Lebanon, Oregon, purchasing one pizza and a package of Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake raw chocolate chip cookie dough. They shared the pizza at a family gathering and stored the cookie dough. Two weeks later they began to eat the raw dough. Days later, Michael and Renne both experienced symptoms that included fever, chills, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

Although Renne recovered after several days of rest, Michael’s symptoms persisted and worsened until he could not walk properly and was limping. Consequently, Michael decided to seek medical attention and visited Peace Health Urgent Care located in Vancouver, WA. Doctors told him he likely had an infection and urged him to go to the Emergency Room immediately. Michael heeded his doctors’ orders and headed to the nearest ER where a battery of testing confirmed that he had a Salmonella infection. The infection had likely developed into sepsis, with the bacteria settling into his hip and impairing his ability to walk.

“The severity of Michael’s injury underscores the fact that Salmonella sickens over 1.4 Million Americans every year. The food industry must do more to drive these numbers down,” said attorney, William Marler.

The Washington Department of Health used whole genome sequencing, which revealed that Michael’s case was highly related to isolates known to be part of the Papa Murphy’s outbreak. To date, Michael is still suffering from constant pain from his Salmonella infection. His doctors have informed him that a hip replacement may be necessary and that, if he does not rest and wait for full recovery, he will likely end up bedridden.

Marler Clark, The Food Safety Law Firm, is the only law firm in the nation focusing exclusively on foodborne illness litigation. The Salmonella lawyers of Marler Clark have represented thousands of victims of Salmonella and other foodborne illness outbreaks and have recovered over $850 million for clients. William Marler is currently featured in a Netflix documentary: Poisoned | The Dirty Truth About Your Food.

If you or a family member became ill with a Salmonella infection, including suffering from Reactive Arthritis or Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and you’re interested in pursuing a legal claim, contact the Marler Clark Salmonella attorneys for a free case evaluation at (866) 768-6846.