WASHINGTON (AP) β The U.S. Justice Department has formally moved to dismiss a criminal fraud charge against Boeing and has asked a judge to cancel an upcoming trial connected to two plane crashes that killed 346 people off the coastΒ of IndonesiaΒ andΒ in Ethiopia, according to court documents filed Thursday.
The deal, announced last week, will allow the American aircraft manufacturer to avoid criminal prosecution for allegedly misleading U.S. regulators about the 737 Max jetliner before the planes crashed less than five months apart in 2018 and 2019.
The βagreement in principleβ will require the company to pay and invest more than $1.1 billion, including an additional $445 million for the crash victimsβ families, in return for dismissing the criminal case, according to court documents. Dismissing the fraud charge will allow the manufacturer to avoid a possible criminal conviction that could have jeopardized the companyβs status as a federal contractor, experts have said.
U.S. District Judge Reed OβConnor in Fort Worth, Texas, will decide whether to accept the motion to dismiss, accept the terms of the non-prosecution agreement and whether to cancel the trial. OβConnor on Thursday ordered all the lawyers to present him with a briefing schedule on the governmentβs motion by June 4.
Some relatives of the passengers who died inΒ the crashesΒ have been pushing for a public trial, the prosecution of former company officials, and more severe financial punishment for Boeing. The Justice Department has noted that the victimsβ families had mixed views on the proposed deal.
Nadia Milleron, a Massachusetts resident whose 24-year-old daughter, Samya Stumo, died in the Ethiopia crash, in an email Thursday said it hurt her to read the Justice Departmentβs βfalseβ statement that the agreement will secure meaningful accountability, deliver public benefits and bring finality to a complex case whose outcome would otherwise be uncertain.
βThis is not a difficult or complex case because Boeing signed a confession,β Milleron said. βThere will be no accountability as a result of the NPA (non-prosecution deal).β
Boeing said in a statement that the company is committed to complying with its obligations under the resolution, including commitments to further institutional improvements and investments, as well as additional compensation for families of those who died in the two plane crashes.
βWe are deeply sorry for their losses, and remain committed to honoring their loved onesβ memories by pressing forward with the broad and deep changes to our company that we have made to strengthen our safety system and culture,β a Boeing spokesperson said in the statement.
Attorney Mark Lindquist, who represents dozens of the victimsβ families said in a statement Thursday that although he had wanted to see a more vigorous prosecution, he didnβt think it was going to happen.
βAt this point, I can only hope the criminal case and the lawsuits motivated Boeing to improve safety,β Lindquist said. βThatβs what really matters. We all want to walk onto a Boeing plane and feel safe.β
Boeing was accused of misleading theΒ Federal Aviation AdministrationΒ about aspects of the Max before the agency certified the plane for flight. Boeing did not tell airlines and pilots about a new software system that could turn the planeβs nose down without input from pilots if a sensor detected that the plane might go into an aerodynamic stall.
The Max planes crashed after a faulty reading from the sensor pushed the nose down and pilots were unable to regain control. After the second crash, Max jets were grounded until the company redesigned the software.
The Justice Department charged Boeing in 2021 with deceiving FAA regulators about the software and about how much training pilots would need to fly the plane safely. The department agreed not to prosecute Boeing at the time, however, if the company paid a $2.5 billion settlement, including the $243.6 million fine, and took steps to comply with anti-fraud laws for three years.
But last year, federal prosecutors said Boeing violated theΒ terms of the 2021 agreementΒ by failing to make promised changes to detect and prevent violations of federal anti-fraud laws. Boeing agreed last JulyΒ to plead guiltyΒ to the felony fraud charge instead of enduring what could have been a lengthy public trial.
Then in December, OβConnor rejected the plea deal. The judge said the diversity, inclusion and equity, orΒ DEI, policies in the government and at Boeing could result in race being a factor in picking a monitor to oversee Boeingβs compliance with the agreement.
Under the new agreement, Boeing must retain an βindependent compliance consultantβ who will make recommendations for βfurther improvementβ and report back to the government, court documents said.
