By Courtney Hessler, The Herald-Dispatch
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A late-day holiday decision from last year’s opioid trial in Huntington resulted in a ripple effect, leading to the postponement of another trial set to start Tuesday in West Virginia.
On Independence Day, Federal Judge for the District of Southern West Virginia David A. Faber released a 185-page ruling in favor of AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson in their 2021 trial brought by the City of Huntington and Cabell County.
The ruling found during a months-long opioid trial last year, the city and county fell short in proving the distributors had caused a public nuisance in sending millions of pills to the area, which the governments had said fueled the opioid epidemic. He wrote they had just been following orders made by the pharmacies, which were based on doctor prescriptions.
They had sought $2.6 billion to help implement a plan that would abate the crisis in the area, but were awarded zero…