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The Justice Department plans to allow Boeing to avoid a criminal trial if it agrees to plead guilty to fraud charges stemming from two fatal 737 Max crashes more than five years ago, according to lawyers for the families of two crash victims.
Federal officials revealed the details in a call with victims’ families Sunday afternoon, according to attorneys Paul G. Cassell and Mark Lindquist, who said the Justice Department had not yet presented the deal to Boeing.
Cassel, the University of Utah law professor, said the compensation terms include a nearly $244 million fine, new investments in safety improvements, a three-year review by an outside watchdog and meetings between Boeing’s board of directors and the victims’ families.
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment, while Boeing declined to comment.
Cassell, who represents more than a dozen victims’ families, said he and the families considered the deal “outrageous” and fell far short of what they wanted. He called the agreement a “private plea deal” because it would not force Boeing to admit liability for the 346 deaths in the crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia in late 2018 and early 2019.
“The families of the victims will strongly oppose this plea agreement,” Cassell said in a statement. “The 346 innocent people killed by Boeing need more justice.”
The Justice Department said it plans to tell Boeing about its proposal after the call, Cassel said.
The terms offered to Boeing will reportedly be updated 2021 Settlement The deal resolves criminal charges against the aerospace giant for conspiring to defraud the Federal Aviation Administration. The new agreement would require Boeing to plead guilty to that charge, lawyers said.
Criminal charges in 2021 focused on Two employees accused of withholding information The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released information about changes to the MCAS software that was later linked to the crashes.
Under an earlier deal, the company agreed to pay $500 million to the victims’ families. It also agreed to pay more than $1.7 billion to its customers who were unable to take delivery of Max planes during the 20-month global ban.
In May, the Justice Department found Boeing violated the agreement Boeing said in a statement at the time that it believed it had complied with the terms of the earlier agreement.
In weighing how to punish Boeing for the crashes, the Justice Department faces competing pressures to hold Boeing accountable for its missteps without undermining the company because of its important role in the U.S. economy and national security.
The 2021 settlement angered families of crash victims, who have long argued that Boeing and its executives should face more severe consequences, including a public trial. Many of the victims’ families have reached civil settlements with the company, though a handful are seeking civil damages trials scheduled to begin later this year.
In 2022, a Texas jury Former Boeing technical pilot acquittedMark A. Forkner defrauded two of the firm’s clients, in the only criminal case the federal government has ever brought against an individual connected to the accident.
The Justice Department has also launched a criminal investigation into Boeing after a cabin panel exploded during a flight on a Max jet operated by Alaska Airlines in January. While no major injuries were reported, the incident renewed concerns among lawmakers and the public about the quality of Boeing’s aircraft.
Mark Walker Contributed reporting.
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