St. Louis tobacco trial could take six months

ST. LOUIS, Missouri - A billion-dollar tobacco-related trial is scheduled to open in St. Louis in January, and court officials have begun the process of finding jurors. It isn't easy -- court officials believe the trial could take six to seven months.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that court officials sent surveys to 6,000 residents over the past month as part of the process to weed out potential jurors.

Results of the surveys will help St. Louis Circuit Judge Michael David avoid potential jurors who would face hardship from a lengthy trial. Those hardships could include health problems, child care, work or travel commitments.

Court officials project that about 10 percent of the surveys will yield potential jurors. Then, in November, those still in the jury pool will complete another questionnaire, this one aimed at discovering biases. Attorneys from both side and the judge will look at those surveys to determine a smaller group from which to select the 12-member jury and two alternates.

Final selection is scheduled to begin Jan. 10.

Many believe the case will be long and complicated.

The case -- the city of St. Louis v. American Tobacco -- dates to 1998. Hospitals, clinics and the city of St. Louis say cigarettes cause illnesses and they want cigarette makers to reimburse them for caring for smokers who were uninsured or did not pay their bills.

Tobacco companies say hospital's can't collect because they were not the ones damaged by cigarettes, according to court documents.

Experts expect the case to set a precedent for similar cases across the country. More than 160 have been filed, but the one in St. Louis is the only one to make it past legal hurdles and move toward a trial.

Missouri hospitals are seeking to recover losses for patients treated since 1993 -- potentially $1 billion.

Plaintiffs initially included 44 hospitals, including most of the major hospitals in St. Louis, plus the city itself on behalf of its clinics and the now-closed City Hospital. For various reasons, nearly a dozen hospitals have dropped out of the suit over the years.