In a major development, a federal judge in Texas has rejected a plea deal between Boeing and the US Department of Justice. The deal would have allowed Boeing to plead guilty to a felony conspiracy charge and pay a fine for misleading US regulators about the 737 Max jetliner, which was involved in two fatal crashes that claimed the lives of 346 people.
The ruling by US District Judge Reed O’Connor has created uncertainty around the criminal prosecution of the aerospace giant. This decision has sent a strong message that backroom deals between the government and powerful corporations will no longer be accepted without proper accountability.
The plea deal, which was rejected by the judge, would have allowed Boeing to plead guilty to defrauding regulators who approved pilot training requirements for the 737 Max nearly a decade ago. However, prosecutors did not allege that this deception played a role in the crashes. This raised concerns among the families of the victims, who have been seeking justice for their loved ones for years.
The families of the victims have been pushing for a public trial, the prosecution of former company officials, and more severe financial punishment for Boeing. They have been relentless in their pursuit of justice and have been outraged by the plea deal that would have let Boeing off the hook with a mere fine.
Attorney Paul Cassell, who represents the families of the victims, has called the judge’s decision an important victory for the rights of crime victims. He stated that this ruling has recognized the need to hold Boeing accountable for its deadly crime and ensure that such incidents do not happen again in the future.
The plea deal was first announced in January 2021, with the Justice Department charging Boeing with defrauding Federal Aviation Administration regulators who approved pilot training requirements for the 737 Max. As part of the deal, the company would have paid a $2.5 billion settlement, mostly money that would have been paid to airline customers due to the FAA grounding the 737 Max fleet for 20 months.
However, this deal was met with criticism from the families of the victims, who felt that it was a cozy agreement between the government and Boeing. They were not informed about the negotiations, which was a violation of their rights. While the judge ruled last year that the Justice Department had broken the victims’ rights law, he stated that he had no power to overturn the deal.
The deferred-prosecution agreement was set to expire this year, but a new incident involving a 737 Max during an Alaska Airlines flight over Oregon led to the revival of the prosecution. The Justice Department determined that Boeing had violated the terms of the 2021 settlement and revived the prosecution of the conspiracy charge.
In July, Boeing agreed to plead guilty to a single felony count of conspiracy to commit fraud for allegedly deceiving the FAA about the training requirements for the 737 Max. The company had downplayed the significance of a new flight-control system called MCAS, which was later found to be a contributing factor in the crashes.
The Justice Department stated that the conspiracy charge was the toughest they could prove against Boeing. However, they also made it clear that they would not present any evidence that Boeing’s deception caused the crashes if the case went to trial. This raised concerns among the families of the victims, who felt that the company was not being held accountable for its actions.
The plea agreement included a fine of up to $487.2 million, but this would have been reduced to $243.6 million due to the penalties paid as part of the 2021 settlement. In addition, Boeing would have to invest $455 million in compliance and safety programs and be placed on probation for three years under the deal.
At a hearing on October 11, Boeing’s lawyer Ben Hatch defended the plea deal, stating that the company is a pillar of the national economy and defense and needed to know its punishment before agreeing to plead guilty. This statement shocked the families of the victims, who were present in the courtroom. They felt that this was a clear indication that Boeing was too big to be held accountable for its actions.
Michael Stumo, who lost his daughter in the second crash, expressed his disappointment with the lawyer’s statement. He stated that it was unacceptable for a company to be able to get away with killing people without facing any consequences, simply because they are too big and their shareholders would not like it.
The judge’s decision to reject the plea deal has been welcomed by the families of the victims and advocates for justice. It sends a strong message that
