Rolan v. N.C. Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services

STEPHENS, Judge,

Factual Background and Procedural History

This case arises from an Escherichia coli 0157:H7 (“E. coli”') outbreak linked by the North. Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control to a petting zoo operated during the 2004 North Carolina State Fair (“the Fair”). E. coli is a bacterium that can cause potentially life-threatening illness in humans. Children under five years old are especially at risk. Exposure to the bacterium can result from “eating contaminated meat or leafy greens, exposure to contaminated water, or through contact” with…