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Ft. Lauderdale Jury Rules Against Philip Morris

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Feb 12, 2009 3:59 pm US/Eastern

Ft. Lauderdale Jury Rules Against Philip Morris

FT. LAUDERDALE (CBS4) ― A Fort Lauderdale jury has found that a longtime cigarette smoker's death was caused by addiction to nicotine. The verdict could be a devastating loss to tobacco giant Philip Morris in potential damages awarded to the plaintiff.

The lawsuit was the first of around 8,000 individual cases to go to a jury since the Florida Supreme Court threw out a $145 billion class-action jury award against big tobacco companies. After the Supreme Court ruling, each smoker's case must be decided individually.

The decision reached on Thursday, came from a six-person jury in the case of Elaine Hess. She is the widow of Stuart Hess who attorneys claim died from an addiction to nicotine. Lawyers for Philip Morris said Stuart Hess chose not to quit despite known health risks.

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