The Department of Justice (DOJ) is preparing to offer Boeing a plea deal in the criminal case over two deadly crashes involving its 737 Max jets, according to a lawyer representing the families of the crash victims.
The potential settlement includes a fine of about $244 million and three years of probation and supervision from an outside monitor, said Paul Cassell, an attorney for 15 families of victims who died in 2018 and 2019 crashes involving Boeing 737 Max planes. , to The Hill. The accidents killed 346 people in total.
The agreement, which was discussed in a conference call with families Sunday afternoon, would also include a new investment in safety improvements and a meeting between Boeing’s board and victims’ families, Cassell said.
Cassell said his team was told the deal would be offered to Boeing immediately after Sunday’s call ended. Cassell dismissed the DOJ offer as a “sweetheart deal.”
“The agreement will not recognize, in any way, that Boeing’s crime killed 346 people. It also appears to be based on the idea that Boeing did not injure any victims,” Cassell wrote in a statement. “The families will strongly oppose this plea deal.”
“The memory of the 346 innocent people killed by Boeing demands more justice than this,” he added.
Boeing will have until the end of this week to accept or reject the offer, The Associated Press reportedciting several people involved in Sunday’s call with the Federal Public Ministry.
The Justice Department and Boeing did not immediately respond to The Hill’s request for comment.
The criminal case came after the department found that Boeing violated a 2021 agreement related to the two fatal crashes. The agreement protected the company from criminal liability for fraud in exchange for a promised review of its compliance system and a $2.5 billion fine.
Reuters reported last week Justice Department prosecutors recommended that Boeing face criminal charges for violating the agreement.
The potential plea deal comes about a week before the July 7 deadline to determine whether the aerospace giant should be charged.
Boeing told The Hill in a statement last month that it believes it continues to comply with the agreement.
“We believe we have honored the terms of this agreement and look forward to the opportunity to respond to the Department on this matter,” the company said.
If the plea deal is reached, U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor will no longer be able to increase Boeing’s sentence for conviction or impose any additional punishment, Cassell added.
Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun was questioned by senators earlier this month about the deal and other security issues during a Homeland Security subcommittee hearing last week. Calhoun apologized to the families of the crash victims.
“I want to apologize personally, on behalf of everyone at Boeing. We are deeply sorry for your losses. Nothing is more important than the safety of the people who board our planes. Every day, we seek to honor the memory of those lost through a constant commitment to safety and quality,” said Calhoun.
The next day, a group of families released a letter to the DOJ, urging federal prosecutors to launch an “aggressive criminal prosecution” against the plane manufacturer.
“As the Boeing crime is the deadliest corporate crime in U.S. history, a maximum fine of more than $24 billion is legally justified and clearly appropriate, although it could be partially suspended if funds that would otherwise have been paid are dedicated to appropriate quality control and safety measures. ,” Cassell wrote on behalf of some victims’ families.
Boeing came under renewed scrutiny last January when a door on a 737 Max 9 aircraft exploded while in the air.
The explosion caused a hole in the side of the aircraft and the pilots were forced to make an emergency landing at Portland International Airport in Oregon. The Federal Aviation Administration temporarily grounded all 737 Max 9 aircraft and conducted an investigation into the manufacturer. Problems with safety checks and manufacturing were found in Boeing’s construction process, leading to increased pressure from regulators and Congress to resolve the problems.
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