Florida jury hits cigarette manufacturer RJ Reynolds with $23.6 billion judgement

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http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/07/19/florida-jury-hits-cigarette-manufacturer-rj-reynolds-with-23-6-billion-judgement/



Florida jury hits cigarette manufacturer RJ Reynolds with $23.6 billion judgement
By Agence France-Presse
Saturday, July 19, 2014 19:55 EDT

A Florida state jury has ordered the RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company to pay $23.6 billion in punitive damages to the wife of a longtime smoker who died of lung cancer, attorneys said.

Friday’s verdict, seen as one of the largest for a single plaintiff in Florida history, also awarded more than $16 million in compensatory damages to the estate of Michael Johnson Sr.

During the four-week trial, lawyers for Johnson’s widow Cynthia Robinson argued that RJ Reynolds was negligent in informing consumers of the dangers of consuming tobacco and thus led to Johnson contracting lung cancer from smoking cigarettes.

They said Johnson had become “addicted” to cigarettes and failed multiple attempts to quit smoking.