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Cigarette Makers Lied for 50 Years
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| starsearcher |
| quote: | Feds: Cigarette Makers Lied for 50 Years
Tue Sep 21, 5:50 PM ET
By Peter Kaplan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Cigarette makers lied and tried to confuse the public about the dangers of smoking for 50 years, the U.S. government said on Tuesday as its $280 billion case against the industry went to trial.
In opening arguments in the biggest and most ambitious racketeering case in history, the government said a 1953 meeting of tobacco industry executives at New York's Plaza Hotel was the starting point for a conspiracy designed to cast doubt on links between cancer and cigarettes.
"This case is about a 50-year pattern of misrepresentation, half-truths and lies by the defendants that continues to this day," U.S. Justice Department (news - web sites) attorney Frank Marine told a federal court.
The 1999 lawsuit launched under President Bill Clinton (news - web sites) targets Altria Group Inc. (NYSE:MO - news) and its Philip Morris USA unit; Loews Corp.'s (NYSE:LTR - news) Lorillard Tobacco unit, which has a tracking stock, Carolina Group (NYSE:CG - news); Vector Group Ltd.'s (NYSE:VGR - news) Liggett Group; Reynolds American Inc.'s (NYSE:RAI - news) R.J. Reynolds Tobacco unit and British American Tobacco Plc (BATS.L) unit British American Tobacco Investments Ltd.
The companies have denied the government's allegations and say they have drastically changed their marketing practices since 1998, when they signed a landmark settlement with state attorneys general that severely restricts marketing and subjects cigarette makers to oversight.
Tobacco companies say the past misconduct alleged by the government does not mean that they are likely to commit fraud in the future, a showing they say is necessary to justify the $280 billion financial penalty sought by the government.
"Cigarettes are not sold the way they were sold in the past," Philip Morris attorney William Ohlemeyer said outside the courthouse after the government made its presentation. "The best way to predict the future is to look at how cigarettes are sold today."
As the trial's first day continued, stocks of tobacco companies were mostly lower, including Altria, down 1.9 percent to $46.19 a share on the New York Stock Exchange (news - web sites) and Reynolds American Inc., down 2.4 percent at $68.24 a share.
The trial is expected to last about six months and feature more than 100 witnesses.
MEMO CITED
In its opening arguments, the government said it would prove that the industry constructed a huge public relations operation designed to sow confusion about the health affects of smoking.
Justice Department attorney Sharon Eubanks cited a 1964 memo from a Philip Morris executive that said the industry had to provide "a psychological crutch and a self rationale to continue smoking."
In January, 1964 the U.S. Surgeon General issued a landmark report outlining the risks of smoking that briefly cut into tobacco sales.
Citing dozens of similar internal industry documents, government attorneys charged that the cigarette makers misled the American public about whether tobacco was addictive, and whether it caused cancer and other diseases.
They also said they would show that the industry manipulated nicotine levels and marketed cigarettes to teenagers, even as they publicly denied both practices, and that the companies suppressed and destroyed potentially incriminating documents and research.
Justice Department officials want the industry to give up $280 billion worth of past profits and seek tougher rules on marketing, advertising and warnings on tobacco products.
Cigarette makers say a $280 billion penalty would put them out of business and have challenged the government's demand.
An appeals court is scheduled to hear oral arguments in November on the penalty issue and some industry analysts think settlement talks could follow if the government loses.
Marine, of the Justice Department, told Kessler that the figure represents only a third of what the government could have sought.
"If it's money obtained by fraud, it's not their money," Marine said.
Lawyers for the cigarette makers are scheduled to respond with their opening statement after the government's presentation.
"We're prepared to offer a very detailed response to what you saw today," Ohlemeyer said outside the courthouse.
Later in the week, the government is scheduled to call former Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) Commissioner David Kessler as its first witness.
In testimony already filed with the court, Kessler has described how the FDA (news - web sites) found that tobacco companies were manipulating levels of nicotine in cigarettes.
The former FDA commissioner is not related to the judge.
Some anti-smoking groups fear the administration of President Bush (news - web sites) may want to settle the case, but Attorney General John Ashcroft (news - web sites) said in a statement that the Justice Department looked forward to recapturing industry profits and preventing the marketing of cigarettes to young people. |
Source: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tm...racketeering_dc
RJ sorry in advance for another article posted :toothless |
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| St_Andrew |
$280 billion, thats a lot of money!
hope it goes through! |
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| DigiNut |
Gosh, who would have thought that tobacco companies wouldn't want people to know about the health risks cigarettes posed? :rolleyes:
As much as I despise cigarettes, I think it's debatable whether or not their PR campaign really constitutes fraud. One would have to demonstrate that tobacco consumers had a tangible expectation of safety, and in this case it would be pretty hard to show that they weren't aware of the risks.
Nevertheless, legal or not, these people are even slimier than the government so I'm not going to mind seeing them go out of business if that does indeed happen. |
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| Jayx1 |
| next up...sueing fast food companies because their products make people fat :rolleyes: |
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| Rocco |
| quote: | Originally posted by Jayx1
next up...sueing fast food companies because their products make people fat :rolleyes: |
or sueing the automotive industry for making cars, which have a risk of causing an accident.
Automotive companies should put a label on the car that says "SURGEON'S WARNING: VEHICLE MAY CAUSE COLLISION." and show a picture of a few totalled cars.
actually u know what? i wanna sue those tobacco companies as well! 1/2 a million do it for me thought :p |
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| {b.s.e.} |
| it's formaldehyde and cyanide and benzene for christ's sake, what did people expect? |
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| PartEgurl |
| Fast food places make food at least, we need food to survive. Sure it isn't the healthiest, but its still food. We need cars to get around, we all depend on them so much. Suing a tabbaco company is SO SO different then suing a fast food place or a car company. There is not one beneficial aspect of smoking, we obtain nothing but health problems from it, and it is addictive. Tabbaco campanies deserve to be sued ! |
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| Jayx1 |
| beneficial or not, people chose to smoke. No one shoved that first cigarette into their mouth. |
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| Crazy Serb |
| quote: | Originally posted by PartEgurl
Fast food places make food at least, we need food to survive. Sure it isn't the healthiest, but its still food. We need cars to get around, we all depend on them so much. Suing a tabbaco company is SO SO different then suing a fast food place or a car company. There is not one beneficial aspect of smoking, we obtain nothing but health problems from it, and it is addictive. Tabbaco campanies deserve to be sued ! |
You tell 'em...
It's the same thing with drug dealers - they are being chased around by cops. Why? Because they provide people with something that's highly addictive and damaging to their health. And tobacco companies are almost the same... almost. ;) |
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| Jayx1 |
Just sharing the wealth! :)
Serb: The difference is that cigs are legal, taxed by the government and regulated by the government. Drugs are not. |
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| newr |
| Make cigarettes illegal... and Players Dumarier Marlboro and Craven should give me $10,000 cause ive probably spent that much on smokes in the last 11 years... |
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| Crazy Serb |
| quote: | Originally posted by Jayx1
Serb: The difference is that cigs are legal, taxed by the government and regulated by the government. Drugs are not. |
tell me about it... |
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