By Edward L. Sweda, Jr., Senior Attorney- PHAI DEATH PENALTY On May 20, 2010, the Commonwealth of Virginia executed Darick Demorris Walker, who had been convicted of murdering Stanley Beale in 1996 and Clarence Elwood Threat in 1997. Also on May 20, 2010, the Altria Group, Inc. Annual Shareholders Meeting took place in Richmond, Virginia. […]
By Edward L. Sweda, Jr., Senior Attorney – PHAI NEW RULES REGARDING ADMITTANCE TO THE MEETING. The Reynolds American Inc. (RAI) Annual Shareholders Meeting took place in Winston-Salem, North Carolina on Friday morning, May 7, 2010. According to a March 22, 2010 “Dear Shareholder” letter from President and CEO Susan M. Ivey, those shareholders who
On May 20, 2010 after a three-week trial, a six-person Fort Lauderdale, Florida jury returned a verdict in favor of Connie Buonomo, the widow of Matthew Buonomo, who died from chronic obstructive lung disease in 2008 at the age of 80.Mr. Buonomo had started smoking as a teenager. The defendant, R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. was
More Florida Verdicts against Cigarette Companies – Buonomo Read More »
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Edward L. Sweda or Mark Gottlieb (617) 373-8462 or (617) 373-2026 APRIL 26, 2010 A Fort Lauderdale, Florida state court jury on Monday awarded $15 million in compensatory damages to the family of Margot Putney, a longtime smoker who died of lung cancer in 1995. The jury found the defendants’ negligence
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 22, 2010 Contact: Edward L. Sweda or Mark Gottlieb (617) 373-2026 or (617) 373-8462 Florida juries and a Court of Appeal have help make March and April of 2010 two months during which tobacco companies are being held accountable for their massive, reprehensible misconduct that has wreaked havoc on the lives
Review could open door for substantial remedies that would help smokers to quit and protect kids from starting – and could force the cigarette companies to pay hundreds of billions of dollars Today the Solicitor General of the United States filed a Petition for Writ of Certiorari with the Supreme Court of the United States
All Parties Seek Supreme Court Review of Racketeering Trial: US v. Philip Morris Read More »
The City of Boston is taking a leadership role in making public housing smoke-free. Today, PHAI\’s Chris Banthin appeared on a panel with Boston Mayor Tom Menino on WGBH FM’s Callie Crossley Show to discuss why smoke-free public housing is the right thing to do. Chris directs the Massachusetts Smoke-Free Housing Project. Listen to the
Although uncredited in the clip, PHAI Senior Staff Attorney and Director of the Tobacco Control Resource Center, Christopher Banthin, discusses the public health impact of Massachusetts’ low funding commitment to tobacco control. He is responding to a report issued by the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids on the Tobacco Settlement, 11 years later. VIDEO:
On December 2, 2009, Mark Gottlieb and Cara Wilking presented a poster to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Healthy Eating Research program grantees in Tucson, Arizona. PHAI is exploring how state consumer protection laws can be used to address unfair and deceptive food and beverage marketing practices directed toward children or those who purchase food
PHAI Researches Unfair Food Marketing to Kids (and those who purchase for kids) Read More »
The New York Times released an opinion editorial piece entitled A Big Loss for Big Tobacco, where they noted that: Last week’s $300 million verdict, which could still be reversed or reduced on appeal, provides a strong incentive for others to sue.” Big awards can send a message to the tobacco industry, or be regarded
PHAI’s Tobacco Products Liability Project is mentioned in NY Times Editorial Read More »