In what seems to be a defeat for the tobacco industry, a jury of three men and three women in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, ruled on Thursday that a smoker was addicted to cigarettes and that is the cause of his death. There are about 8,000 similar cases filed by law firms across the state.

 

Elaine Hess sued Philip Morris USA claiming his husband had died as a result of an addiction to nicotine in cigarettes. Stuart Hess began smoking during his adolescence and smoked until his death, at 55. His favorite brand was Philip Morris’s Benson & Hedges, which eventually caused him lung cancer.

 

The case stem from a 1994 class-action lawsuit brought by Dr. Howard Engle, a Miami Beach pediatrician who tried on several occasion to quit smoking but didn’t succeed. He alleged tobacco companies intentionally addicted smokers and conspired to suppress information on the dangers of smoking.

 

On the other hand, Philip Morris defended itself by arguing Stuart Hess was not addicted to cigarettes. He had numerous chances to quit but simply chose not to stop, it further claimed. The company warned it was not giving up. “The Hess trial is not over,” said the Richmond, Va.-based company, a unit of Altria Group.

 

Elaine Hess attorneys Gary Paige and Alex Alvarez contradicted Philip Morris. In their closing arguments they said “people smoke because they’re addicted, not because they choose to. Nobody wants to be addicted to cigarettes. It’s as addictive as cocaine and heroin.”

 

On Friday, the six jurors will determine the amount of damages to award Elaine Hess. It will be interesting to see what percentage the jury will decide was the smoker’s own fault or the liability of the tobacco company.