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PA SECOND MISSISSIPPI MAN CONVICTED OF PESTICIDE MISUSE
Release Date: 05/09/97
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FOR RELEASE: FRIDAY, MAY 9, 1997
SECOND MISSISSIPPI MAN CONVICTED OF PESTICIDE MISUSE
Paul F. Walls, Sr. of Moss Point, Miss., was convicted by a jury on May 2, in U.S. District Court in Hattiesburg, Miss., on 45 counts of knowingly spraying the pesticide methyl parathion without a license and three counts of illegally distributing methyl parathion in violation of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act. Walls applied the pesticide even though he had been ordered by a Mississippi State Court not to do so. Methyl parathion is a powerful pesticide which is only approved for outdoor agricultural uses in uninhabited fields. Exposure to methyl parathion can produce convulsions, coma and death. Dock Eatman Sr., an associate of Walls, was previously convicted of 21 counts of illegal pesticide application. When sentenced, Walls faces a maximum of 48 years in prison and/or fines up to $4.8 million. Eatman faces a maximum of 21 years in prison and/or up to $2.1 million in fines. This case was investigated by EPA's Criminal Investigation Division, the FBI and authorities from the state of Mississippi.
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