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Excerpts from: Tobacco concern will back lawsuit against Ames

By STACI HUPP  DesMoinesRegister.com  [10/03/01]

Philip Morris USA will pay for lawsuit against a smoking ordinance that affects restaurants.

               Ames, Ia. - A tobacco company will pick up the tab for
               seven business owners to sue the city of Ames over a
               smoking ban, officials said Tuesday.

               Philip Morris USA officials agreed to help the Ames
               businesses last month said Billy Abshaw, a spokesman.

               "As they made the request to us, we decided this meets
               our business objective," Abshaw said. "We think that our
               goals are mutual, and if there's something we can do to
               help, we will."

 
               The lawsuit is the first of its kind in Iowa. Attorneys for
               both sides drew battle lines in their first court appearance
               Tuesday.

               An attorney for the businesses asked a judge to lift the ban
               temporarily while the case is argued.

               Judge Carl Baker will rule on the request within a month.

               Concern about the public's health outweighs concern over
               a restaurant's sales receipts, said John Klaus, Ames city
               attorney.

               Klaus said the Ames smoking ban complies with state law.

               "If the Legislature did not want cities to adopt ordinances
               restricting smoking, they could've easily said so," he said.

               About 20 people, including an economist, cancer survivors,
               a pregnant woman and asthma sufferers, have agreed to
               be witnesses for the city.

               "I have buried four of my uncles because of cigarettes,"
               said Margaret Epplin, 52. "For us, it's just basically a health
               issue. It means we can go out without having to worry that
               the family will get sick."

               Dorr said customers have had a choice.

               Sixty-five percent of Ames restaurants banned smoking
               before the ordinance, he said. At least five restaurants
               have become smoke-free on their own terms since the ban
               was enforced, said George Belitsos, who heads the Ames
               Tobacco Task Force, a group that backs the ordinance.

               The Ames ordinance was a compromise between city
               officials and restaurant owners, Klaus said.

               Belitsos accused Dorr's law firm of lobbying the state for
               the tobacco industry. Dorr declined to comment about the
               issue.

               Philip Morris officials wouldn't say how much they expect
               the lawsuit to cost. The corporation has sponsored similar
               lawsuits in the past, Abshaw said. He declined to
               elaborate.

               "This isn't an isolated incident," Abshaw said. "We
               certainly review these things on a case-by-case basis. For
               us, it's not so much about support of the lawsuit. It's
               support of the business owners."

               Details

               THE ISSUE: Seven Ames restaurant owners have sued
               the city for approving a limited smoking ban in restaurants.
               Owners of Cyclone Truck Stop, Wallaby's, Dublin Bay,
               Cafe Beaudelaire, Tradewinds Cafe, Whiskey River and
               People's Bar & Grill are named in the lawsuit.

               BACKGROUND: The Ames ordinance prohibits
               smoking in restaurants from 6 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Bowling
               alleys, pool halls, truck stops and bars where food
               accounts for less than 10 percent of sales receipts are
               exempt. Businesses can be fined $500 for a first offense
               and $750 if it happens again. More than 800 cities in more
               than 20 states have enforced some type of smoking
               ordinance, health officials say.

               SIMILAR CASES: In March, an appeals court upheld a
               judge's decision that a smoking ordinance in Marquette,
               Mich., conflicted with a state statute governing designated
               smoking areas in restaurants. Restaurant owners in
               Princeton, N.J., also successfully sued a regional health
               commission over a smoking ban.

               WHAT'S NEXT: A district court judge will take up to a
               month to decide whether the Ames ordinance should be
               stopped while the case is debated in court.