PVE Woman Sues Tobacco Company for Death of Husband

By BILL HETHERMAN
City News Service

Testifying in trial of her negligence suit against Lorillard Tobacco Co., the widow of a longtime smoker became emotional today as she told a Los Angeles jury how she has dealt with the loss of her husband, who died 16 years ago of lung cancer after decades of smoking.

"When he was gone, I felt like half of me was gone," 69-year-old Tajie Major of Palos Verdes Estates said of former Navy Capt. William "Earl" Major. "We were like partners. I miss him so much."

Her lawsuit alleges Lorillard Tobacco put sales over safety in marketing its cigarettes, a strategy that she maintains contributed to the death of her spouse at age 55.

Major's lawyer, Gilbert Purcell, said internal Lorillard documents from as far back as the mid-1970s show the company's researchers knew about the dangers of cigarette smoking and were also aware of the addictive powers of nicotine.

Lorillard attorney Carl Rowley has countered that Major's late husband knew from the time he was a young man that cigarette smoking could possibly affect health, and that every pack he smoked had a warning label on it.

The plaintiff testified that she met her future husband at a Navy officer's club near San Diego, and they were married in March 1977. She had two daughters from a previous marriage, she said.

She said her husband had a nine-month tour of duty at sea shortly after they wed. The family lived on both coasts and in Hawaii and eventually settled in the South Bay, she said.

She said her husband smoked Kent -- manufactured by Lorillard -- as well as Marlboro and Winston, which are made by Philip Morris USA Inc. and R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., respectively. R.J. Reynolds is currently seeking to acquire Lorillard.

The widow sued the other two tobacco companies along with Lorillard, but her claims against them were dismissed shortly before trial.

She said her husband smoked most when they lived in Virginia near Washington D.C., perhaps because of the political nature of the area. He smoked in the den of their home, while he was doing paperwork and when he drove, she said.

"He would be lighting up on the way to the car," said Major, a non- smoker.

Her husband tried many times to quit smoking, but became irritable and resumed his habit, she said. When he stopped for good in 1989, he gained about 50 pounds that he did not lose until he undertook an exercise regimen to get ready for marathon running, she said.

Major said she initially accepted her husband's smoking. She said cigarettes were smoked by many in the Navy and could be easily bought on base.

"After a couple of years, I realized it was bothering me," Major testified. "I told him I was having trouble with it."

She said she would not buy cigarettes for him or clean his ashtrays.

Asked by her lawyer, Gilbert Purcell, if she misses her husband, Major replied, "Oh my God, yeah. I thought of myself as a very independent Navy wife who has to be strong because he's gone to war."

Purcell displayed for the Los Angeles Superior Court jury a montage of photos of William Major from the time he was in high school to one of his final outings with his wife two months before his death.

She said the pain of losing her husband has eased somewhat.

"It doesn't hurt like a knife anymore, but it's still there," she said.

Major said she keeps busy taking care of her horse and being involved in equestrian activities.

"A horse can be expensive, but it's certainly cheaper than a psychiatrist," she said.