Department of Justice Seal



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE	CRM


TUESDAY, APRIL 28, 1998                                                                                                                              (202) 514-2008


                                                                                                                                                                                TDD (202) 514-1888





JUSTICE DEPARTMENT REACHES AGREEMENT WITH LIGGETT & MYERS




FOR COOPERATION IN TOBACCO PROBE








	WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Department of Justice today
announced that it has reached an agreement with a major tobacco
cigarette manufacturer, New York City-based Liggett Group Inc.,
and its subsidiary, Liggett & Myers Inc., of Durham, NC, in which
Liggett agrees to cooperate fully with the Department in its
criminal investigation of the tobacco industry.


	The Department's agreement with Liggett contains no grant of
immunity from prosecution.


	According to this agreement, Liggett agrees, among other
things, to provide truthful, complete, and accurate information
about:


	 industry knowledge of the health consequences of smoking 
cigarettes and the addictive nature of nicotine;





	 the targeting of children and adolescents by the industry;





	 the manipulation of nicotine by the industry;





	 control of research by the Council for Tobacco Research 	  	  
("CTR"), including special projects conducted under
the  auspices of the CTR; and


	 lawyer involvement in directing research or crafting false
	  or misleading statements by any of the tobacco companies 	  	  
to the Congress, the Food & Drug Administration, and 	  	 
American consumers concerning the above.





	Liggett has also agreed to actively assist the Department's
efforts to obtain relevant evidence, including evidence of crimes
and fraud contained in documents over which the other tobacco
companies continue to assert attorney-client and attorney work
product privileges.


	The Department's criminal investigation into the practices
of the tobacco industry is continuing.  


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98-201