The RICO case turns 10 today

Today marks the 10th anniversary of the historic racketeering (RICO) case against Big Tobacco, United States of America, et al. v Philip Morris USA, Inc., et al. On Aug. 17, 2006, U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler issued her final opinion, in which Philip Morris, RJ Reynolds, BATCo, American Tobacco, Lorillard, and Brown & Williamson were all found guilty of defrauding the American people by lying for decades about the health risks of smoking, manipulating nicotine content in cigarettes, and marketing to children.

The opinion weighs in at 1683 pages, and while we encourage you to settle down and read it in its fascinating entirety, the following excerpt sums it up perfectly:

"The seven-year history of this extraordinarily complex case involved the exchange of millions of documents, the entry of more than 1,000 Orders, and a trial which lasted approximately nine months with 84 witnesses testifying in open court. Those statistics, and the mountains of paper and millions of dollars of billable lawyer hours they reflect, should not, however, obscure what this case is really about. It is about an industry, and in particular these Defendants, that survives, and profits, from selling a highly addictive product which causes diseases that lead to a staggering number of deaths per year, an immeasurable amount of human suffering and economic loss, and a profound burden on our national health care system. Defendants have known many of these facts for at least 50 years or more. Despite that knowledge, they have consistently, repeatedly, and with enormous skill and sophistication, denied these facts to the public, to the Government, and to the public health community. Moreover, in order to sustain the economic viability of their companies, Defendants have denied that they marketed and advertised their products to children under the age of eighteen and to young people between the ages of eighteen and twenty-one in order to ensure an adequate supply of “replacement smokers,” as older ones fall by the wayside through death, illness, or cessation of smoking. In short, Defendants have marketed and sold their lethal product with zeal, with deception, with a single-minded focus on their financial success, and without regard for the human tragedy or social costs that success exacted."

Kessler, Final Opinion, pages 33-34

Besides imposing remedies upon the tobacco companies that included banning the use of terms such as "low tar," "light," "ultra light," "mild," and "natural", which had been used to mislead consumers about the health risks of smoking particular cigarette brands, Kessler’s Final Judgment and Order (shorter, at a mere 18 pages) extended the length of time the tobacco companies must publish on their websites their internal company documents produced in litigation. Those documents are housed permanently in UCSF Library’s Truth Tobacco Industry Documents Archive. To celebrate the anniversary, pay us a visit and browse some tobacco industry documents.

You can download zip files of the final judgment and order, final opinion, and other court documents from TTID’s “Lawsuits and Court Documents” webpage (scroll down to US v. Philip Morris, et al.)

Happy reading, and happy anniversary!