BOULDER, Colo — The Boulder Valley School District (BVSD) has filed a lawsuit against e-cigarette companies JUUL and Altria, alleging they participated in deceptive and misleading marketing that targeted young people.
The lawsuit alleges the e-cigarette companies designed products to create an addiction in teens, then launched youth-targeted marketing programs aimed at building a future customer base.
The complaint also alleges that the companies violated Colorado law and the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”) by marketing nicotine products to increase addiction.
BVSD Superintendent Dr. Rob Anderson said in a press release about the lawsuit that he has watched students targeted by deceptive advertising practices for years, repeating year after year.
“Our campuses have been littered with the JUUL pods and we have had students as young as fourth and fifth grade who have been treated for nicotine addiction related to vaping," said Dr. Anderson. "This is not OK and we intend to do everything in our power to hold them accountable for the impact it has had on our students.”
The allegations include that JUUL and Altria created highly addictive e-cigarettes that were easy for young people and non-smokers to inhale and experimented and measured non-smokers' "buzz" levels and perceptions of throat harshness.
The complaint goes on to say that JUUL's e-cigarettes deliver substantially higher doses of nicotine than cigarettes and that the companies knew their products were unnecessarily addictive, delivering more nicotine than smokers needed or wanted.
The lawsuit includes allegations that JUUL and Altria enticed newcomers with kid-friendly flavors like mango and cool mint, without insuring the flavoring additives were safe for inhalation and designed e-cigarettes devices to avoid the look and feel of a cigarette, making it easy for young people to hide the habit.
The complaint goes on to further allege that the companies were the cause of more young people using e-cigarettes that led to a youth e-cigarette epidemic and public health crisis.
The lawyer representing the plaintiffs in the lawsuit said the companies "sell poison as pleasure."
Lawyer Mark Chalos added, "...when you aim it at kids, and use every trick in the psychology book to sell the product and make it irresistible, maximizing uptake and not incidentally your profits, you’re well into villain territory. That’s why these lawsuits are crucial to protecting our children for the future.”
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