Lighting Into Big Tobacco

摘要

Even the judge was startled. As he unfolded the verdict sheet and got his first look at the history-making $145 billion penalty handed down against the tobacco industry last week, Florida state court Judge Robert Kaye hesitated. His first impulse was to stop and think about things for a bit. Then the burly, white-haired jurist seemed to realize that the whole world was watching (CNN, broadcasting live, had just welcomed its international viewers), and he read the mind-boggling numbers into the record. "Lot of zeros," Kaye mumbled as ailing plaintiffs and their families wept.