Exactly how long it takes for E. coli bacteria to make a person sick is the central issue at an appeals hearing launched by two men trying to overturn their 2009 conviction for serving dangerous food.

The St. Catharines Standard reports Senan Daoud and Mahmoud Asaad. who operated the Yaman Restaurant, were in a St. Catharines court Monday to appeal their conviction for serving food unfit for human consumption that resulted in a fine of $7,500 each.

Their lawyer, Chris Bittle, argued testimony during their 2009 trial about the incubation period of the E. coli that made several people sick after eating at the Yaman left reasonable doubt about the source of the bacteria.

The pair were convicted on five counts of selling unfit food, Justice Ann Watson heard Monday, after a 2007 incident in which the water to the restaurant had been cut off due to a watermain break. Asaad and Daoud kept their restaurant open and served food. Several people who ate there later fell violently ill and tests confirmed they had contracted E. coli, with most contracting the same strain of the bacteria public health inspectors later found on chicken and a knife in the Yaman’s kitchen.