An addiction to tobacco is a tough battle for many people, but is the tobacco industry to blame when those who are addicted see their lives cut short? The family of San Diego Padres Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn, who died of oral cancer, will attempt to make that case.
Today, Gwynn’s surviving family members have filed a lawsuit in San Diego Superior Court to hold the tobacco industry accountable for his death.
Tony Gwynn's widow & two children filed suit today in SD Superior Court seeking to hold tobacco industry accountable for his death.
— Bernie Wilson (@berniewilson) May 23, 2016
The lawsuit specifically targets Altria Group Inc. among other tobacco-related industry members. The main takeaway from the lawsuit will claim Gwynn was a victim of his addiction to smokeless tobacco or dip while in college and was never able to overcome the addiction. According to details shared by the New York Times, Gwynn’s family claims Gwynn would use one and a half cans to two full cans of smokeless tobacco per day, which they claim was the equivalent of four to five packs of cigarettes every day for the span of 31 years in baseball, from college to minor league and major league baseball to his days as a coach. The lawsuit is asking the jury to trial on grounds of negligence, fraud and product liability and seeks no damages in the suit.
“Now that the family understands how he was targeted, they understand that the industry knew they had this highly carcinogenic product and they were marketing it to people like Tony,” said David S. Casey, the lead lawyer for the plaintiffs. “They want to hold them accountable and let a jury make a decision as to what is proper in this case.”
This is kind of groundbreaking, to say the least. Or at least it could potentially be a groundbreaking case. The addiction to a tobacco product has been in question for years, but never before has the fmaily of one of sports’ top players taken it to court. If the Gwynn family is successful in its lawsuit, the ramifications for the tobacco industry going forward could be pretty significant.
