Florida Jury Awards $23.6B Verdict In Big Tobacco Lawsuit

Posted by | July 20, 2014 00:14 | Filed under: News Behaving Badly Top Stories

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That’s the amount the R.J. Reynolds company will have to pay in one of the largest verdicts for a single plaintiff on Florida history.

A state jury awarded the punitive damages Friday to the estate of Michael Johnson Sr., who died in 1996 from lung cancer after years of smoking cigarettes, attorney Christopher Chestnut told NBC News. Johnson’s estate previously won a $17 million verdict as compensation for his family’s loss.

“This jury sent a message and gave 23.6 billion reasons why you can’t lie to consumers,” said Chestnut, who along with attorney Willie Gary represent 400 cases in Florida against big tobacco companies, including R.J. Reynolds.

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Copyright 2014 Liberaland
By: Cheston Catalano

Cheston Catalano is a Kentucky-based journalist whose work has been featured in the Chattanooga Times Free Press and the Clarksville Leaf Chronicle. He is a long-time contributor to Liberaland.

8 responses to Florida Jury Awards $23.6B Verdict In Big Tobacco Lawsuit

  1. fahvel July 20th, 2014 at 04:21

    re write this one when they pay!

    • Budda July 20th, 2014 at 09:28

      Right. These initial awards are always sized down by later court decisions.

  2. fahvel July 20th, 2014 at 04:21

    re write this one when they pay!

    • Budda July 20th, 2014 at 09:28

      Right. These initial awards are always sized down by later court decisions.

  3. ChrisVosburg July 20th, 2014 at 12:27

    $23.6 billion, huh? That’d buy a lot of Camels.

  4. ChrisVosburg July 20th, 2014 at 12:27

    $23.6 billion, huh? That’d buy a lot of Camels.

  5. Diana Renee July 21st, 2014 at 20:42

    Am I missing something – were cigarettes not properly labelled when this person died?

  6. Diana Renee July 21st, 2014 at 20:42

    Am I missing something – were cigarettes not properly labelled when this person died?

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