The Associated Press

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - A jury Tuesday cleared Bayer Corp. of liability in a $560 million lawsuit that accused the pharmaceutical giant of ignoring research linking the cholesterol-lowering drug Baycol to dozens of deaths.

The jury deliberated for 21/2 days before returning the verdict. It was the first of about 8,000 cases against Bayer to go to trial.

"The verdict validates Bayer's assertion that the company acted responsibly in the development, marketing and voluntary withdrawal of Baycol," Bayer said in a statement.

The lawsuit was brought by Hollis Haltom, an 82-year-old engineer who said a muscle-wasting disease caused by Baycol severely weakened his legs. His lawyers had produced e-mails and internal documents to argue that Bayer didn't adequately warn doctors about the possible side effects of the drug before it was pulled off the market.

"We're not happy about it," the plaintiff's daughter, Holly Haltom, said after the verdict. "My heart goes out to all the others, especially victims who died."

Bayer, the Pittsburgh-based U.S. subsidiary of German pharmaceutical giant Bayer AG, had acknowledged the link between the drug and a side effect called rhabdomyolysis - a rare but life-threatening condition in which muscle cells are destroyed. In severe cases, the condition can lead to kidney failure.

The Food and Drug Administration linked Baycol to at least 52 deaths worldwide, including 31 in the United States.

Bayer shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange leapt after the verdict, and were up $3.94, or 35 percent, at $15.18 in afternoon dealings.

The lawsuit had painted Bayer as a company overly eager to jump into the lucrative U.S. market for the cholesterol-fighting drugs known as statins. About 8 million Americans use statins to lower their risk of heart attacks.

Plaintiff attorney Mikal Watts showed the jury Bayer e-mails, memos, and other internal company documents he said suggested the company disregarded disturbing research on Baycol.

But Bayer attorney Philip Beck had argued the company vigorously warned marketers and physicians before recalling the drug. He said Tuesday's verdict was "a vindication of our client."

Baycol won FDA approval in 1997 and became the fastest-growing drug in Bayer's history. By the time it was pulled, it was Bayer's No. 3 seller, expected to earn some $720 million that year with 6 million patients worldwide, including 700,000 in the United States.

The pharmaceutical giant has paid $125 million to settle about 450 cases.