Family members hold photographs of Boeing 737 MAX crash victims lost in two deadly 737 MAX crashes that killed 346 people as they arrive for Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg’s testimony before a Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee hearing on “aviation safety” and the grounded 737 MAX on Capitol Hill in Washington, October 29, 2019.
Sarah Silbiger | Reuters
Relatives of some of the 346 people killed in two Boeing MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 asked a federal judge on Wednesday to reject a deal between the Justice Department and the plane maker that allows the company to avoid prosecution in a criminal fraud case.
The agreement enables Boeing to avoid being branded a convicted felon and to escape oversight from an independent monitor for three years that was part of a plea deal struck in 2024.
The families cited Judge Reed O’Connor’s statement in 2023 that “Boeing’s crime may properly be considered the deadliest corporate crime in U.S. history.”
They argue dismissal of the case is not in the public interest and the obligations imposed on Boeing are not enforceable. They said the Justice Department has opted not to wait for a ruling but “has already contractually obligated itself not to further prosecute Boeing, regardless of how the court rules.”
If the government declined to move forward with the prosecution even if the court rejected the deal, O’Connor should appoint a special prosecutor, the families told the judge.
Exterior of a long-range Boeing 737 MAX 10 at the Farnborough Airshow, on 18th July 2022, at Farnborough, England.
Richard Baker | In Pictures | Getty Images
Under the deal, Boeing agreed to pay an additional $444.5 million into a crash victims fund to be divided evenly per crash victim, on top of a $243.6-million fine.
Boeing in July agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud conspiracy charge after the two fatal 737 MAX crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia.
Boeing will pay $1.1 billion in total, including the fine, compensation to families and over $455 million to strengthen the company’s compliance, safety, and quality programs.
The Justice Department said in late May the deal “secures meaningful accountability, delivers substantial and immediate public benefits, and brings finality to a difficult and complex case whose outcome would otherwise be uncertain.”
The department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The vast majority of the families have settled civil suits with Boeing and collectively have been “paid several billion dollars,” the Justice Department said.
Boeing, which did not immediately comment on Wednesday, will no longer face oversight by an independent monitor under the agreement, but will hire a compliance consultant.
Boeing had previously been set to go on trial June 23 on a charge it misled U.S. regulators about a crucial flight control system on the 737 MAX, its best-selling jet.