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More on DOJ Suit: Tobacco Lawyer Denies Knowing that Documents Were Destroyed [10/05-3]
Excerpts from: Tobacco Lawyer Denies Knowing of Documents
By AP Wire [10/04/04]
A longtime lawyer for major cigarette manufacturers said Monday government lawyers got it wrong when they speculated he would testify he knew firsthand that the industry had destroyed documents.
Justice Department lawyers had written in a court filing that attorney Robert Northrip would say he knew that documents central to a lawsuit in Australia were destroyed. The suit involved an Australian subsidiary of British American Tobacco Co., PLC.
But when Northrip took the stand Monday in the government's racketeering case against the industry, he said he first heard the allegations about document destruction when they became public as part of the court decision against the Australian company two years ago.
He also filed a document with the court last week saying the government was wrong to speculate he knew about document destruction in the Australia case.
Justice lawyers declined comment Monday.
The Australian court decision had named Northrip as one of several people who might be "likely to know whether such documents were destroyed."
Northrip also faced questions about an industry memo indicating he advised tobacco executives to destroy research showing cigarette additives were harmful. He testified that he told his clients only that they could destroy data about additives that were tested but not ultimately used in cigarettes.
The government contends the industry lied about the addictive nature of nicotine, and Justice lawyer Sharon Eubanks asked Northrip about a written statement on addiction that he wrote.
The statement, which Northrip referred to Monday as a think piece, characterized cigarette smoking as a habit rather than addiction and said, "Statements in company documents cannot refute this conclusion."
The next witness is scheduled to take the stand Wednesday. He is William Farone, a former Philip Morris executive, who has testified against the industry in other suits and alleges the industry knew about smoking hazards before it acknowledged those dangers publicly.
The government is seeking $280 billion the cigarette makers allegedly earned through fraud.
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