WASHINGTON, DC – February 23, 2011 – After a delay caused by Big Tobacco’s attempts to continue their history of deceiving the American public, today U.S. District Court Judge Gladys Kessler made public the U.S. Department of Justice’s strong recommendations for the corrective statements that tobacco companies must make to explain their decades of lies and dishonesty. The corrective statements stem from Judge Kessler’s 2006 opinion that found the major cigarette manufacturers guilty of violating civil provisions of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). Judge Kessler will ultimately decide what corrective statements the tobacco companies must make, based on submissions from the U.S. government, public health interveners and the industry.
The American Cancer Society and five other public health groups are interveners in the case, which was filed by the Department of Justice in 1999 to hold Big Tobacco accountable for more than 50 years of fraudulent and deceptive marketing practices. After the tobacco industry filed a court motion to block public disclosure of the proposed corrective statements earlier this month, the public health interveners joined together to urge Judge Kessler to require public disclosure of both the government’s proposed corrective statements and research about them.
John R. Seffrin, PhD, chief executive officer of the American Cancer Society and its advocacy affiliate, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN), issued the following statement:
“Big Tobacco should be compelled to explain its contemptible record of lies and deception over more than 50 years that helped to addict adults and children to its deadly products. Meaningful corrective statements, a remedy included in Judge Kessler’s landmark 2006 opinion, are an important part of Big Tobacco setting the record straight with the American people. We support strong, fact-based statements, like those put forth today, which educate the public on the dangers of tobacco use and secondhand smoke and force Big Tobacco to clearly admit their years of wrongdoing.
“The ongoing lawsuit serves to reiterate what we have known for decades: Big Tobacco is guilty of knowingly and willingly deceiving the American public about the hazards of its products and engaging in egregious practices, including fraud.
“Big Tobacco has thrived on the business of addiction by marketing to children and misleading adults about the harms of its deadly products, which kill nearly 440,000 people in America each year. Tobacco is the most preventable cause of death in this country, responsible for 30 percent of all cancer deaths and 87 percent of all lung cancer deaths. It is time for Big Tobacco to finally be held accountable for its deplorable actions. As public health interveners in the case, we look forward to public airing and discussion about the statements which were put forth today.”
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Christina Saull
(202) 585-3250
[email protected]
Steven Weiss
(202) 661-5711
[email protected]