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Testimony to begin in lawsuit against Brown & Williamson Tobacco 

Federal court testimony opens this week in a civil case that alleges a major U.S. tobacco company is responsible for the lung cancer death of a Vandalia, Mo., man in 1995.

The family of Charles E. Steele filed suit against the Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp., in 1997, alleging the company knew its Kool brand of cigarettes were hazardous and had failed to study the harmful effects of smoking. In addition, the suit alleges the company misrepresented smoking to its customers as "socially desirable, not harmful and...beneficial to smokers." . . "Charles Edward Steele did not know that smoking cigarettes caused lung cancer, that the nicotine within the cigarettes was addictive or that he would be unable to quit smoking when he would try to," wrote J. Michael Cronan, attorney for the family.

Steele died on Oct. 4, 1995, after his lung cancer had spread to his brain.

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Charles Edward Steele did not know that smoking cigarettes caused lung cancer, that the nicotine within the cigarettes was addictive or that he would be unable to quit smoking when he would try to.
J. Michael Cronan, attorney for the Steele family. Quoted in <i>Testimony to begin in lawsuit against Brown & Williamson Tobacco</i>