--- title: "Three More Federal Lawsuits Filed Against Taylor Farms in the Iceberg Lettuce Cyclospora Outbreak, in Missouri, Kansas and Pennsylvania." date: 2026-09-23T18:29:00-07:00 author: Bill Marler canonical_url: "https://marlerclark.com/news_events/three-more-federal-lawsuits-filed-against-taylor-farms-in-the-iceberg-lettuce-cyclospora-outbreak-in-missouri-kansas-and-pennsylvania" section: News --- [All News](/news_events) / [Press Releases](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/press-releases) / # Three More Federal Lawsuits Filed Against Taylor Farms in the Iceberg Lettuce Cyclospora Outbreak, in Missouri, Kansas and Pennsylvania. *Morett*, *Douglas* and *Cox v. Taylor Fresh Foods, Inc. and Taylor Farms California, Inc., filed September 15, 22 and 23. Each names only the two Taylor companies. Every plaintiff is laboratory-confirmed.* **BAINBRIDGE ISLAND, Wash. — September 24, 2026 —** Marler Clark, [The Food Safety Law Firm](https://www.marlerclark.com/), has filed three more federal lawsuits against Taylor Fresh Foods, Inc. and Taylor Farms California, Inc. on behalf of four people sickened in the 2026 multistate *Cyclospora* outbreak that federal and state health officials traced to shredded iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms de Mexico. The complaints were filed in three states over eight days and follow the firm’s earlier cases in Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and Illinois. Each names the two Taylor companies and no one else, and each demands a jury. The cases are *Morett v. Taylor Fresh Foods, Inc., et al.*, No. 4:26-cv-01475, filed September 15 in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri; *Douglas v. Taylor Fresh Foods, Inc., et al.*, No. 2:26-cv-02567, filed September 22 in the District of Kansas; and *Cox v. Taylor Fresh Foods, Inc., et al.*, No. 1:26-cv-00264, filed September 23 in the Western District of Pennsylvania, Erie Division. Each pleads strict product liability, breach of express and implied warranties, negligence and negligence per se. William Marler of Marler Clark is counsel in all three, pro hac vice forthcoming, with Gregory W. Aleshire of Aleshire Robb, P.C. in Springfield as local counsel in Missouri and Rachel N. Boden and Randall L. Rhodes of Rouse Frets White, P.C. in Leawood as local counsel in Kansas. Shelly and John Douglas, husband and wife from Wellsville, Kansas, ate at the Taco Bell at 18731 South Gardner Road in Gardner on July 1. According to their complaint, both fell ill on July 10, and by the next day Mr. Douglas was using the bathroom as many as twenty-five times a day. Both sought care on July 13; stool specimens submitted July 27 came back positive that evening. On July 28 Mr. Douglas spent about nine hours in an emergency department before he was admitted, and he was treated with intravenous fluids for dehydration and malnutrition over roughly two and a half days. Mrs. Douglas, on antibiotics for her own infection, was too ill to visit him. Their forty-fifth wedding anniversary passed while they were sick. On September 4, more than two months after the meal, Mr. Douglas was readmitted with weakness, lethargy and atrial fibrillation. He was still testing positive for *Cyclospora* and was released on September 6. Joshua Cox of Wattsburg, in Erie County, Pennsylvania, bought meals containing shredded iceberg lettuce at the Taco Bell at 6935 Peach Street in Erie on June 25, June 29 and July 6. His symptoms began on or about July 7, and he went to the emergency room at LECOM Medical Center on July 9. The illness then followed the relapsing course of untreated cyclosporiasis for weeks. On August 4 he went to a second emergency room, at St. Vincent Hospital in Erie. The next day his primary care physician submitted a stool sample, and it came back positive. Maleah Morett of Nashville, Tennessee was driving to visit family in Iowa on or about July 2 when she stopped at the Taco Bell at 4413 McMasters Avenue in Hannibal, Missouri and ate two chicken chalupas. Her symptoms began on or about July 8, after she returned home, with pain at times so severe she could not move. She tried repeatedly to get a medical appointment and could not. She was finally seen on July 28 at a clinic in Brentwood, Tennessee, where a stool test confirmed *Cyclospora cayetanensis*. Missouri, where she was exposed, and Tennessee, where she fell ill, are both among the twenty-one states on CDC’s outbreak list. Bill Marler, the firm’s managing partner, said: Taylor Farms grew this lettuce, shredded it, bagged it and shipped it to foodservice customers in at least thirty-one states. The restaurants served what they were sent. These complaints name the companies that put the parasite in the bag, and no one else. CDC [declared the outbreak over](https://www.cdc.gov/cyclosporiasis/outbreaks/07-26/index.html) on September 11 at 12,883 illnesses in twenty-one states, at least 570 hospitalizations and two deaths, both in Michigan — the largest cyclosporiasis outbreak on record in the United States. [FDA says its investigation remains open](https://www.fda.gov/food/outbreaks-foodborne-illness/investigation-multistate-outbreak-cyclospora-illnesses-iceberg-lettuce-july-2026): onsite inspections and sampling at the growers and the processing facility in Mexico have ended, and the samples are pending analysis. The outbreak is only part of the season. CDC’s [national count](https://www.cdc.gov/cyclosporiasis/cases/index.html), last updated September 15, stands at 19,883 laboratory-confirmed cases acquired in the United States this season, with 1,064 hospitalizations, in forty-nine states and the District of Columbia, against 1,180 in the same period of 2025. Seven thousand of those confirmed cases have not been publicly tied to the lettuce or to any other food. Marler added: Every one of these people did what the government asked. They got tested, and the tests came back positive. Getting there took Joshua Cox two emergency rooms and nearly four weeks, and it took Maleah Morett weeks just to get an appointment. John Douglas was back in a hospital bed on September 4, still testing positive, from a meal he ate on July 1. CDC closed the outbreak on September 11. It is not closed in Wellsville, Wattsburg or Nashville. FDA named the lettuce on July 16 and Taylor Farms de Mexico on July 17, weeks after the first of these illnesses began. The Food Traceability Rule that would have put lot-level records on that lettuce was supposed to take effect on January 20 of this year. It was pushed to July 2028. Until that date comes back, the next outbreak will be traced by hand too. Marler Clark represents hundreds of people sickened in this outbreak and expects to file additional cases. **About Marler Clark** Marler Clark, [The Food Safety Law Firm](https://www.marlerclark.com/), is the nation’s leading law firm representing victims of foodborne illness. The firm has recovered more than $850 million for clients sickened by *E. coli*, *Salmonella*, *Listeria*, *Campylobacter*, *Cyclospora*, hepatitis A, botulism and other pathogens since 1993, when William Marler represented Brianne Kiner in the Jack in the Box *E. coli* O157:H7 outbreak. Bill Marler founded [Food Safety News](https://www.foodsafetynews.com/) in 2009 and is the subject of the Emmy Award–winning Netflix documentary *Poisoned*. **Media Contact** William D. Marler, Managing Partner Marler Clark, Inc., PS 180 Olympic Drive S.E., Bainbridge Island, WA 98110 1-800-884-9840 \# # # ### Other Cyclospora Lawsuits [Cyclospora Outbreak Tied to Taylor Farms Lettuce - Marler Clark Files Cases in Multiple States](https://marlerclark.com/cyclospora-outbreak-in-indiana-kentucky-michigan-ohio-and-west-virginia-tied-to-taco-bell-and-taylor-farms) [Fresh Express Bagged Lettuce Linked to Cyclospora Outbreak](https://marlerclark.com/bagged-lettuce-sold-by-aldi-hy-vee-and-jewel-osco-grocery-stores-recalled-after-cyclospora-outbreak) [Cyclospora Tainted Cilantro Sickens 495 in United Sates](https://marlerclark.com/cyclospora-tainted-cilantro-sickens-457-in-united-sates) [Nationwide Cyclospora Outbreak: Iowa & Nebraska Cases Linked to Bagged Salad, Cilantro](https://marlerclark.com/cyclospora-outbreak-in-midwest-linked-to-fresh-produce) ### Lawsuit updates about foodborne illnesses [Reactive Arthritis Lawsuit 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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 ###### [Cyclospora Food Poisoning](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/cyclospora/what-is-cyclospora) What is Cyclospora cayetanensis? Cyclospora cayetanensis is a unicellular, microscopic parasite that can cause food- or water-related gastrointestinal illness. The oocyst form of the parasite is chlorine-resistant and must sporulate... ###### [Epidemiology of Cyclospora](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/cyclospora/epidemiology-of-cyclospora) Cyclosporiasis is an intestinal illness caused by the protozoan parasite Cyclospora cayetanensis, which is transmissible by ingestion of food or water contaminated with sporulated oocysts. Most cases of cyclosporiasis occur... ###### [Cyclospora’s Mode of Infection](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/cyclospora/cyclosporas-mode-of-infection) The modes of transmission of C. cayetanensis are still not completely understood. Direct person-to-person transmission is unlikely because the oocysts are not infectious when initially shed (unlike Cryptosporidium, another foodborne... ###### [Symptoms of Cyclospora Infection](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/cyclospora/symptoms-of-cyclospora-infection) What are the typical symptoms of Cyclospora infection? Cyclospora infects the small intestine (bowel) and usually causes watery diarrhea, bloating, increased gas, stomach cramps, flatulence, loss of appetite, nausea, low-grade... ###### [How is Cyclospora Diagnosed?](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/cyclospora/how-is-cyclospora-diagnosed) Cyclosporiasis is usually diagnosed symptomatically in clinical settings, including the presence of watery diarrhea, abdominal cramping, and bloating. In untreated, immunocompetent people, the diarrhea can last from days to weeks... ##### 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)