MESSAGE BOARDS:

Big tobacco lawsuits

IN-DEPTH SPECIAL:

Tobacco under attack

September 22, 1999
Web posted at: 3:20 p.m. EDT (1920 GMT)

In this story: Profits called the motive Government wants its money back Decades of tobacco company misconduct President says suit is right thing to do Tobacco companies promise a fight RELATED STORIES, SITES

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Justice Department filed a lawsuit Wednesday against major tobacco companies, asking for billions of dollars to recover federal smoking-related health care costs.

The complaint was filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, alleging that cigarette companies have conspired since the 1950s to defraud and mislead the American public about the effects of smoking.

"The U.S. government alleges that for the past 45 years, the companies that manufacture and sell tobacco have waged an intentional and coordinated campaign of deceit," said Attorney General Janet Reno.

Reno said the tobacco companies were motivated by greed.

"It has been a campaign designed to preserve their enormous profits, whatever the costs in human lives, human suffering and in medical resources," Reno said.

The attorney general said tobacco companies have known for years that cigarettes were dangerous, but didn't want to lose money.

"The cigarette makers have also realized since 1953 that the truth represents a mortal threat to their business," Reno said. "At every turn, they denied that smoking causes disease and denied that it is addictive."

Reno said the consequences of the tobacco industry's alleged actions have been staggering, with 400,000 Americans dying each year from cigarette-related illnesses. She said the federal government spends more than $20 billion a year in taxpayer money to treat those diseases.

It is that money the Justice Department is suing to recoup.

"Today we filed a lawsuit that seeks to recover from the tobacco companies the billions of dollars that American taxpayers spend each year on smoke-related illnesses," Reno said.

Reno said that over the years, the tab for smoking-related illnesses has accumulated, and taxpayers have footed the bill.

"On behalf of the taxpayer, we're asking the tobacco companies to pay their fair share," Reno said.

Reno contends cigarette makers have known for years about the health dangers of smoking

The Justice Department alleges that internal documents show that top tobacco executives met at the Plaza Hotel in New York City in January 1954 and agreed to wage a long-term public relations campaign of fraud and deception.

"We allege that in carrying out that campaign, they pulled no punches," Acting Assistant Attorney General David Ogden, told a news conference Wednesday. "For decades they repeatedly and consistently denied that smoking cigarettes causes disease, despite their knowledge that it does."

The suit names Philip Morris Inc.; Philip Morris Companies; R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.; American Tobacco Co.; Brown & Williamson Tobacco Co. Inc.; Liggett and Myers Inc.; The Council for Tobacco Research U.S.A. Inc.; and the Tobacco Institute Inc.

President Clinton issued a written statement declaring that "the Justice Department is taking the right course of action. It is time for America's taxpayers to have their day in court."

The idea of suing the tobacco companies to recover an estimated $25 billion spent by federal civilian and military health insurance programs on smoking-related illnesses was a surprise element in President Clinton's State of the Union speech last January.

Reno said the Justice Department is formally closing, without charges, a nearly 5-year-old criminal investigation of whether tobacco companies lied to Congress or regulatory agencies about the addictive nature of tobacco.

"We will not succumb to politically correct extortion," said Greg Little, associate general counsel for Philip Morris.

Little said the federal lawsuit is baseless and promised the industry would not settle out of court as it did in November when the industry ended several state lawsuits by agreeing to $240 billion over 25 years.

"The federal lawsuit filed today has no basis in fact and no basis in law," Little said.

He also said the federal lawsuit was much weaker than the lawsuit filed by the states.

"This lawsuit is a blatant political maneuver that ignores the very significant progress that has been made over the past two years by the state attorneys general, the tobacco industry and the health care community working together to find common ground to address these significant issues," Little said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report, written by Amanda Barnett

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.