How about a Mistrial? That, IMO, would be almost as good as a win.
++++++++++
'
Tuesday June 22, 9:08 am Eastern Time
Tobacco Lawyers Seek Mistrial
By TRACY FIELDS
Associated Press Writer
MIAMI (AP) -- An attorney called cigarette makers deceitful and callous in his closing arguments in a landmark $200 billion lawsuit by smokers, leading tobacco company lawyers to demand a mistrial.
Stanley Rosenblatt represents up to half a million sick plaintiffs and their heirs in the first class-action lawsuit by smokers to reach trial.
''This is an industry which basically just has no shame,'' he said in court Monday. ''The only health the tobacco industry has ever been interested in is the health of their bottom line. They don't give a damn about the American people.''
Industry lawyers objected, but Rosenblatt shot back: ''They don't care a hoot about the health of the American people. They care about the health of what goes into their pockets.''
Benjamine Reid, who represents R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., called Rosenblatt's statements ''an attempt to inflame the jurors and have them reach a judgment based on passion.''
''We've had one day of argument, and in that day counsel has mentioned the Holocaust, Rosa Parks and civil rights, whites-only water fountains in this courthouse, and Martin Luther King on three occasions,'' complained Ed Moss, an attorney for Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp.
Most of the remaining jurors and alternates are black or Hispanic.
The industry lawyers moved for a mistrial; Circuit Judge Robert Kaye deferred ruling on their request.
The tobacco company lawyers were scheduled to begin their two days of closing arguments on Wednesday.
The plaintiffs say they were misled about just how dangerous smoking really is and are seeking $200 billion in damages.
The defendants contend everybody knows smoking is risky, but there's no scientific proof the habit causes any illness.
The other defendants are Philip Morris Inc., Lorillard Tobacco Co. and Liggett Group Inc., as well as the Council for Tobacco Research and the Tobacco Institute.
|
