TULSA, Okla. (AP) — Attorneys for the state of Oklahoma have agreed to allow a federal judge to decide all aspects of the state's lawsuit against 12 Arkansas poultry companies.
A jury trial was to start Monday in the lawsuit that accuses the companies of polluting the Illinois River watershed.
A spokesman for Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson says attorneys decided to allow U.S. District Judge Greg Frizzell hear the entire case. Frizzell ruled earlier that only a portion of the lawsuit would be heard by a jury.
Lawyers for the poultry companies agreed to the request that Frizzell decide the case.
Frizzell also pushed back the start of the trial until next Thursday.
The 12 companies named in the lawsuit include Tyson Foods Inc., Tyson Poultry Inc., Tyson Chicken Inc., Cobb-Vantress Inc., Cal-Maine Foods Inc., Cargill Inc., Cargill Turkey Production L.L.C., George's Inc., George's Farms Inc., Peterson Farms Inc., Simmons Foods Inc. and Cal-Maine Farms Inc.
