dictionary

Tobacco executive tells court that smoking causes cancer

June 15, 2000
Web posted at: 4:43 p.m. EDT (2043 GMT)

	LEGAL RESOURCES
Latest Legal News
Law Library
FindLaw Consumer Center Select a topic Bankruptcy Discrimination Divorce Estate Planning Landlord-Tenant Personal Injury Taxes

MIAMI (CNN) -- The head of the nation's third-largest cigarette maker apologized Thursday to three of the named plaintiffs in the landmark class-action lawsuit brought against the tobacco industry.

Nicholas Brookes, CEO of Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp., looked into the eyes of the two named plaintiffs present at the plaintiffs table and said that he wished that the reforms he has undertaken since 1997 could have been embarked upon sooner. "I thought for some months what I would say ... when I came here to testify and I do have regrets," he said.

"If, and to the extent that any of those things either changed your decision not to quit, or would have allowed you to quit smoking sooner ... or not to have taken up smoking in the first place, then I sincerely apologize to you on behalf of myself, and on behalf of the 7,200 employees of Brown & Williamson."

Frank Amodeo, who suffers from cancer of the throat and feeds himself through a tube, and Ralph DeLa Vechia, whose wife Angie died last year after lung cancer metastasized to her brain, did not appear to react. The third named plaintiff, Mary Farnon, was not present due to illness, according to attorney Stanley Rosenblatt.

Brooke is the second chief executive to testify before the jury in the third and final phase of the tobacco trial. "The buck stops at my desk," Brookes said after he was sworn in.

In the second phase of the case, the jury awarded three of the plaintiffs $12.7 million in compensatory damages.

The jury is deciding how to punish the industry for conspiring to produce a defective and dangerous product, and to hide information from the public on smoking's health dangers, a finding the same jury reached last year.

The entire class of smokers and their survivors involved in the suit could number as many as 500,000.

Brookes told the court he believes that Brown & Williamson is the only company to publicly agree with public-health officials that smoking is the cause of the various diseases, including cancer and heart disease.

Brookes was questioned by Brown & Williamson attorney Gordon Smith.

"Bottom line, in your judgment, and in Brown & Williamson's judgment, does smoking cause lung cancer?" Smith asked.

"Yes," Brookes replied.

"Is smoking addictive?"

"Yes."

Brookes is no stranger to courtrooms, having testified in other litigations against the industry. Analysts have said that he and his company have been more forthcoming than others in the industry.

Brown & Williamson is the maker of Kool, Lucky Strike and GPC cigarettes, which comprise about four per cent of all cigarettes made.

Brookes told the jury that he regretted not testifying on his company's behalf during the first phase of the trial, which determined causation and liability. B&W's director of scientific issues appeared instead.

Brookes said Brown & Williamson was the first tobacco company to provide smokers with information on the ingredients, and dangers of smoking, as well as a youth smoking prevention campaign, which appeared on its corporate Web site in November 1997.

On Wednesday, the chief executive of Philip Morris, Michael Szymanczyk, wrapped up three full days of testimony.

The tobacco companies have argued that they should not be forced to pay any punitive damages because they have changed their practices in recent years by pulling advertisements from magazines aimed at teens, and warning consumers of the risks of smoking. The industry has maintained it is policing itself and does not need to be punished.

The company chiefs of R.J. Reynolds, Liggett, and Lorillard are also expected to testify on behalf of the industry.

Smokers' attorney Stanley Rosenblatt has yet to cross examine Brookes.

Tobacco chief says his company is changing
June 14, 2000
Philip Morris chief testifies in Florida tobacco trial
June 12, 2000
Smokers have greatly elevated risk for severe gum disease, study finds
May 30, 2000
Miami jury awards nearly $13 million in tobacco lawsuit
April 7, 2000

American Academy of Periodontology
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.