Drug Company Found 80% Guilty of Murder
A jury in Wyoming found the British based drug company GlaxoSmithKline
80% responsible for a family murder - suicide committed by a patient
taking a drug produced by the company. The drug was was an anti
depressant marketed as Praxil in the United States and Seroxat in Britain.
According to the report published in the June 16, 2001 issue of the
British Medical Journal, a 60 year old Wyoming man who was suffering from
episodic depression but who was not showing any signs of homicidal or
suicidal tendencies was prescribed the drug. Several years earlier
he was given Prozac, but was taken off the drug because he became
agitated.
In February of 1998 he was put on Praxil for mild depression.
Within several weeks he then went on his murderous rampage. In the
trial several experts were brought in to testify including Dr. David
Healy, director of psychological medicine in Bangor, North Wales. Dr Healy
testified that both his own research and the research of the drug maker
GlaxoSmithKline both showed that a full 25% of healthy volunteers who were
given this type of drug became "extremely agitated". Dr
Healy also testified that in his own studies of volunteers who were not
depressed who were given these drugs that only 33% felt better while on
the drug, while 33% felt worse, and 33% felt no change. However, two
previously non-suicidal and non-depressed volunteers became suicidal and
depressed while on the drug.
The jury in the Wyoming case awarded the surviving family $6.4 million
and found that the drug company was 80% responsible for the deaths.
This court decision is the first time that a drug company has been held
responsible for suicidal and homicidal actions of patients who were using
it's product. Representatives of GlaxoSmithKline said that they were
surprised by the verdict and continue to state the drug is safe.
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