When the Justice Department in 2007 settled its criminal case against the maker of OxyContin, a high-powered painkiller, federal officials claimed a “victory” that would deter other companies from illegally marketing opioids.

But now we know thanks to a once-secret Justice Department report that the case’s real winner was OxyContin’s producer, Purdue Pharma, and its billionaire owners, the Sackler family. According to the report, prosecutors wanted to charge three top Purdue Pharma executives with covering up evidence of OxyContin’s early abuse. But senior Justice Department officials rejected the recommendation, settled the case for $634.5 million and consigned some of the investigators’ findings to secrecy. The company’s executives denied any wrongdoing.

Today, state and local officials who have filed scores of lawsuits against companies that make or distribute prescription opioids face a similar choice — whether to settle those cases or insist that the facts detailing the opioid industry’s disregard for public health finally be revealed.

There are good reasons to resolve these cases quickly. Settlement funds could be used to pay for addiction treatment. At the same time, plaintiffs’ lawyers hired by government officials to pursue their claims are eager for a payday.