Jury Awards $10.6 Million in Wrongful Death Claim Against Tobacco Firm

The family of a woman who smoked cigarettes for decades and died at age 59 from lung cancer has won a $10.6 million verdict in a case against cigarette maker R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.

A jury in Massachusetts Superior Court for Hampden County found that R.J. Reynolds bore some responsibility for Jaqueline Penza’s cancer. The jury found Reynolds participated in a conspiracy to mislead consumers about the dangers or addictiveness of the cigarettes that caused her death. The jury also found that Reynolds marketed cigarettes to minors and committed fraud in the sale of its cigarettes.

The jury awarded Penza’s husband and daughter $1.6 million for medical expenses; $2.5 million for pain and suffering; $4 million for wrongful death and $2.5 million in punitive damages.

The deceased started smoking at age 12 after being given free samples of cigarettes by the tobacco company. She smoked Winston, Newport, and Kent brand cigarettes for a total of approximately 45 years. She struggled to overcome her addiction to nicotine for many years and attempted a variety of methods to quit. She switched from Winston to Winston Lights because she thought they were safer. But Penza was not able to stop smoking until 2016, when she was diagnosed with lung cancer, which ultimately caused her death on March 3, 2018.

In its defense, Reynolds argued that the risks of cigarette smoking have been well known for a long time but Penza did not heed those warnings. The firm maintained that any injuries or damages Penza suffered were caused by her own acts or omissions, or by preexisting conditions or other causes over which Reynolds had no control and for which Reynolds is not responsible. The company also insisted that its products and advertisements complied with all government regulations.

The Penza jury verdict comes a year after another Massachusetts jury in Midddlesex County awarded $20.7 million to a 72-year old man who smoked cigarettes for 55 years and suffered from cancer. The Middlesex County jury found that cigarettes made by R.J. Reynolds and Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Co., a subsidiary, were defectively designed and negligently marketed and caused Joseph Reppucci’s cancer.

That jury awarded Reppucci $14.4 million for his pain and suffering resulting from his 2018 oral cancer; $685,691 for his medical expenses; and $5.7 million to his wife for loss of consortium.