Cigarette Maker Punished for Making Asbestos-Tipped Cigarettes

From 1952 to 1956, Lorillard Tobacco Co., maker of famed Kent cigarettes, “protected” smokers by providing a filter that contained asbestos. The filter may have protected smokers from tar and other smoke-related ailments, but it exposed Don Lenney to the asbestos that eventually gave him mesothelioma, according to a jury verdict last Thursday. A San Francisco jury awarded a total of $1.36 million to Lenney, now terminally ill.

Ironically, the cigarettes which infected Mr. Lenney were routinely advertised as “the greatest health protection in cigarette history.” Tragically, although Mr. Lenney quit smoking cigarettes in 1965 after the U.S. Surgeon General warned of the dangers of cigarettes, the damage was already done thanks to Lorillard’s unsafe product.

Did you smoke Kents during the 50s? Visit with your doctor and the asbestos experts at Fears | Nachawati about the risk of mesothelioma and other forms of asbestos poisoning. Call today at 1.866.705.7584 or send an email to info@fnlawfirm.com.