Jury awards $320 million in punitive damages in Herculaneum smelter case

ST. LOUIS • Sixteen plaintiffs were awarded $320 million in punitive damages Friday in a case against the former owners of a Herculaneum lead smelter accused of negligently causing lead poisoning in the former residents.

That comes on top of $38.5 million in damages awarded the day before for health problems and lost lifetime earnings.

The punitive damages, as described in the instructions to the jury, were to punish and deter. Plaintiffs' attorneys asked the jurors to send a message. They had asked $208 million. The defendant's attorney said the message had already been heard.

The owners of the smelter face many lawsuits over its operation. This was the first case to make it to trial. The plaintiffs sought damages for the owners' actions from 1986 to 1994. The owners sued were Fluor Corp, A.T. Massey Coal and Doe Run Investment Holdings Co.

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