Ex-head of Purdue denies responsibility for opioid crisis

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Fake pill bottles with messages astir Purdue Pharma are displayed during a protestation extracurricular the courthouse wherever the bankruptcy of the institution is taking spot successful White Plains, N.Y., Monday, Aug. 9, 2021. Purdue Pharma's quest to settee thousands of lawsuits implicit the toll of OxyContin is entering its last signifier with the grudging acceptance of astir of those with claims against the company. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

The erstwhile president and committee seat of Purdue Pharma told a tribunal Wednesday that he, his household and the institution are not liable for the opioid situation successful the United States.

Richard Sackler, a subordinate of the household who owns the company, was asked whether each bears work during a national bankruptcy proceeding successful White Plains, New York, implicit whether a justice should judge the OxyContin maker's program to settee thousands of lawsuits.

For each, helium gave a one-word answer: “No.”

The erstwhile words of Richard Sackler, present 76, are astatine the bosom of lawsuits accusing the Stamford, Connecticut-based institution of a large relation successful sparking a nationwide opioid epidemic.

In the 1996 lawsuit to motorboat income of OxyContin, helium told the company’s income unit that determination would beryllium “a blizzard of prescriptions that volition hide the competition.”

Five years later, arsenic it was evident that the almighty medicine symptom cause was being misused successful immoderate cases, helium said successful an email that Purdue would person to “hammer connected the abusers successful each mode possible,” describing them arsenic “the culprits and the problem.”

For those reasons, the activists crusading against companies progressive successful selling opioids often spot Richard Sackler — who was president of the institution from 1999 to 2003, seat of its committee from 2004 done 2007, and a committee subordinate from 1990 until 2018 — arsenic a premier villain.

He has not appeared successful nationalist forums successful caller years extracurricular video of a deposition helium gave successful a suit successful 2015.

Richard Sackler's denial of work for the opioid situation comes a time aft different Sackler household subordinate said the radical wouldn’t judge a colony without guarantees of immunity from further ineligible action.

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