An Alabama federal jury yesterday awarded a group of ranchers $1.28 billion in damages after it found that Tyson Fresh Meats, the country’s largest beef packer and a division of Tyson Foods, used illegal cattle contracts to hold down the prices it paid them. The cattle ranchers originally filed their suit against IBP Inc., which was later bought by Tyson Fresh Meats. This is the first verdict in the three class actions that cattle ranchers have brought against three of the four largest beef packing companies in the U.S. The other two cases remain pending in Alabama federal court.