performing his duties under the contract.
By letter of November 1, 1973, Nelson was informed that the executive committee of the Board of AMPI had directed that the employment agreement of January 12, 1972 be cancelled, effective October 15, 1973. The retirement committee of AMPI notified Nelson in a letter dated September 12, 1974, that the committee had rescinded and terminated Nelson's pension benefits under the retirement plan and trust for employees of AMPI. Such action was taken by the committee as a result of a criminal information in the matter of the United States of America v. Harold S. Nelson to which Nelson pled guilty on July 31, 1974. The information stated that from on or about January 1, 1967 to on or about January 12, 1972, Nelsona jury trial that AMPI take nothing. The court stated:
The Court finds as a fact that Mr. Parr believed the political contributions he made with corporate funds to be in the best interest of AMPI, or at the very least not opposed to those interests. The dairy farmers who were members of AMPI had a vital interest in certain actions of the United States Department of Agriculture, principally the setting of a support price for milk, and Mr. Parr reasonably believed that political contributions would further that interest. This belief, it should be added, was shared by the General Manager of AMPI, Harold S. Nelson, by other employees of AMPI, and by at least some members of the Board of Directors. The verdict of the jury in favor