The Nation - News from June 8, 1988

A six-member federal court jury began deliberations in Newark, N.J., in a trial that charges three tobacco firms with fraud and conspiracy in connection with the death of a smoker. The jurors were chosen by lot from a pool of 11 who heard the case. The panel of three men and three women, which includes two former smokers and the only current smoker among the original pool of 12, went to work in the early afternoon and recessed for the night without reaching a verdict. They will decide whether Philip Morris, Lorillard Inc. and Liggett & Myers are responsible for the death at 58 of Rose Cipollone, who contracted lung cancer after 40 years of smoking their brands. A unanimous vote is required for a verdict. The trial, which began Feb. 1, is the longest-running tobacco liability trial in history.