--- title: Suspected food-borne illness hits prison date: 2007-12-27T07:17:52-08:00 author: Bill Marler canonical_url: "https://marlerclark.com/news_events/suspected-food-borne-illness-hits-prison-2" section: News --- [All News](/news_events) / [Case News](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news) / # Suspected food-borne illness hits prison Thursday, July 18, 2002THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WALLA WALLA -- For the second time this year, scores of Washington State Penitentiary inmates have been treated for a suspected food-borne illness. Local and state health officials are investigating the outbreak that has sickened at least 38 inmates, prison spokeswoman Lori Scamahorn said Wednesday. The illness sent 17 to the hospital and another 21 suffered similar but less severe symptoms, Scamahorn said. Four staff members also were sick, but it was not clear if their illnesses were related. Most of the sick inmates are from the segregation units, where they eat from trays alone in their cells. So far, six have tested positive for campylobacter jejuni. Campylobacter is a communicable disease that can cause bloody diarrhea, abdominal pain, fever, cramping, nausea and vomiting. In healthy people it usually resolves itself within a few days. It can be serious, although rarely fatal, in people with other significant health problems. All of the people diagnosed with the disease are being treated with antibiotics. In March, 65 inmates became ill with campylobacter. A recent Washington state Department of Health report on the earlier outbreak concluded the contamination of a stainless steel food preparation table was the culprit. The penitentiary changed food preparation practices after that incident, including stressing hand-washing among inmates, requiring food handlers to wear gloves during preparation and serving, and thoroughly sanitizing food preparation surfaces. It appears that not all of those measures are being followed correctly, Scamahorn said. ### Other Campylobacter Lawsuits [First Lawsuit Filed in Campylobacter Outbreak at Wild Ginger](https://marlerclark.com/campylobacter-landing-page-template) [Campylobacter Outbreak Traced to Organic Pastures Raw Milk Cream](https://marlerclark.com/campylobacter-outbreak-traced-to-organic-pastures-raw-milk) [Your Family Cow Raw Milk Campylobacter Outbreak](https://marlerclark.com/your-family-cow-raw-milk-is-source-of-campylobacter-outbreak) [N. Carolina Raw Milk Campylobacter Outbreak](https://marlerclark.com/tucker-adkins-dairy-raw-milk-campylobacter-outbreak) [WI Campylobacter Outbreak Traced to Raw Milk Served at School](https://marlerclark.com/wi-campylobacter-outbreak-traced-to-raw-milk-served-at-school) [Campylobacter](https://marlerclark.com/campylobacter) [Campylobacter Outbreak in Syracuse Tied to Hinerwadel's Raw Clams](https://marlerclark.com/campylobacter-outbreak-in-syracuse-tied-to-hinerwadels-raw-clams) ### Lawsuit updates about foodborne illnesses [Reactive Arthritis Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=reactive-arthritis&year=all) [E. coli Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=e-coli&year=all) [Guillain-Barre Syndrome Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=guillain-barre-syndrome&year=all) [Salmonella Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=salmonella&year=all) [Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=hemolytic-uremic-syndrome&year=all) [Listeria Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=listeria&year=all) [Irritable Bowel Syndrome Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=irritable-bowel-syndrome&year=all) [Hepatitis A Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=hepatitis-a&year=all) [Norovirus Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=norovirus&year=all) [Botulism Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=botulism&year=all) [Campylobacter Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=campylobacter&year=all) [Shigella Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=shigella&year=all) [Cyclospora Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=cyclospora&year=all) ### Lawsuits updates by year [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 1998](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=1998) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 1999](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=1999) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2000](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2000) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2001](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2001) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2002](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2002) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2003](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2003) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2004](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2004) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2005](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2005) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2006](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2006) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2007](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2007) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2008](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2008) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2009](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2009) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2010](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2010) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2011](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2011) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2012](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2012) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2013](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2013) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2014](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2014) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2015](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2015) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2016](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2016) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2017](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2017) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2018](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2018) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2019](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2019) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2020](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2020) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2021](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2021) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2022](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2022) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2023](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2023) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2024](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2024) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2025](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2025) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2026](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2026) ##### Get Help #### Affected by an outbreak or recall? The team at Marler Clark is here to answer all your questions. Find out if you’re eligible for a lawsuit, what questions to ask your doctor, and more. [ Get a free consultation ](https://marlerclark.com/contact) ##### Related Resources ###### [Campylobacter Food Poisoning](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/campylobacter/about-campylobacter) What is Campylobacter? Campylobacter is a genus of bacteria that is among the most common causes of bacterial diarrheal illness in humans worldwide. The name means “curved rod,” derived from... ###### [The Incidence of Campylobacter Infections](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/campylobacter/campylobacter-incidence) How common is Campylobacter infection? Campylobacter species represent one of the most common causes of bacterial diarrheal illness worldwide. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)... ###### [The Prevalence of Campylobacter in Food and Elsewhere](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/campylobacter/campylobacter-prevalence) How prevalent is Campylobacter food contamination? Campylobacter infection is commonly associated with the consumption of raw (unpasteurized) milk, undercooked poultry, and contaminated water; however, most Campylobacter cases are sporadic... ###### [Transmission of Campylobacter jejuni](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/campylobacter/campylobacter-transmission) Transmission of and infection with Campylobacter jejuni bacteria As discussed above, most Campylobacter infections in humans are caused by the consumption of contaminated raw milk and dairy products, food, or... ###### [Symptoms of Campylobacter infection](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/campylobacter/campylobacter-symptoms-risks) What are the symptoms of Campylobacter food poisoning? Not all Campylobacter infections cause obvious illness. Symptomatic infection occurs almost exclusively in infants and young children, who can be infected repeatedly... ##### Outbreak Database #### Looking for a comprehensive list of outbreaks? The team at Marler Clark is here to answer all your questions. Find out if you’re eligible for a lawsuit, what questions to ask your doctor, and more. [ View Outbreak Database ](https://outbreakdatabase.com)