Jane Wester is reporting for the New York Law Journal a Suffolk County jury December 30, found that a group of drug companies had created a public nuisance for their role in the opioid crisis, ruling in favor of the state of New York and Nassau and Suffolk counties. The amount of damages owed by the defendants has yet to be determined. The jury began deliberating on December 14, after more than five months of testimony. “It’s somewhat of a miracle that we kept a jury here for six months,” Suffolk County Supreme Court Justice Jerry Garguilo said. Attorneys for the plaintiffs described the verdict as a “massive victory” in a joint statement. New York Attorney General Letitia James also praised the verdict and its significance for families and communities affected by the opioid crisis. “Teva Pharmaceuticals USA and others misled the American people about the true dangers of opioids, which is why, in 2019, I made a promise that our team would hold them and the other manufacturers and distributors responsible for the opioid epidemic accountable for the suffering that they have caused,” James said. The cases originally named a list of major drug companies as defendants, including Purdue Pharma, AmerisourceBergen and Johnson & Johnson. But the bankruptcies of Purdue and a handful of other defendants led to their removal from the case. Defendants Johnson & Johnson, McKesson Corp., Cardinal Health Inc., AmerisourceBergen Drug Corp., Endo International, and Allergan Finance all settled as the case progressed. The bulk of the settlement money is set to go toward opioid treatment, prevention. and education programs. Read the full story in the New York Law Journal.