The federal judge who has presided over the Peanut Corporation of America (PCA) criminal case will conduct his likely last hearing in the case today, and the victims of the 2008-09 Salmonella Typhimurium outbreak are waiting for his restitution order. Sands said he was willing to excuse Lightsey from the proceedings only with a sworn statement signed by the defendant as he required of the Parnell brothers. Late yesterday, it was not clear if Parkman would show up with his client or his signed affidavit waiving his presence. Lightsey, who became a key government witness at trial, was sentenced to three years. Daniel Kilgore, who will apparently will appear today at the Albany hearing, is serving a six year term. He also entered into a plea bargain with the government that saw him testify during the trial. The U.S. Bureau of Prisons currently reports none of the four men are in its custody. The U.S. Marshals Service is charged with moving those in federal custody for court appearances and relocations. Being “parked” in a local jail or state correctional facility is usually viewed as being less desirable than being in a federal prison. The fifth PCA defendant, 42-year old Mary Wilkerson, is not involved in the restitution hearing because her obstruction of justice conviction was for conduct during the investigation not during the criminal enterprise surrounding PCA. She is serving five years at the federal co-ed minimum/medium security prison in Marianna, FL. Sands began hearing testimony on restitution before sentencing of the defendants began last Sept. 21. The judge acknowledges he has missed the 90-day deadline for reaching a restitution order after sentencing, but says he maintains jurisdiction because he “had concluded that restitution was mandatory as to each of the above named Defendants and that the only outstanding issues is the amount of restitution.” The judge originally wanted today’s hearing held in early December, but Lightsey and Kilgore were already being held out of state and the Bureau of Prisons said they could not be moved about that quickly. Sands then set the restitution hearing for today “in the interest of justice and judicial economy.” The principal defense attorneys will be in Sands court this morning for the hearing even if their clients are absent. The Parnell brothers and Wilkerson have appealed their convictions and sentences to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in Atlanta. Circuit judges have extended their deadlines to accommodate today’s action in District Court. A federal jury in September 2014 convicted the Parnell brothers on multiple federal felony counts involving conspiracy and fraud along with shipping contaminated peanut products in interstate commerce. Those shipments sickened thousands and resulted in nine deaths. (To sign up for a free subscription to Food Safety News, click here.)