U.S. Justice Department attorneys announced on Tuesday that Boeing violated an agreement that made it possible to prevent criminal costs following two fatal 737 Max wrecks. The trial was restarted three years prior.
Since 2021, when Boeing and federal prosecutors reached a controversial contract that required the aircraft maker to fulfill certain safety requirements for three years, that trial has been on keep. In the two Max accidents, which left more than 300 people dead, Boeing would have avoided the possibility of a criminal conviction had it been found to possess followed the deal.
Following the two fatal accidents, a board exploded an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max, reviving investigation of whether Boeing had made the necessary changes to its tradition, quality assurance, and compliance plans. The deferred prosecution agreement expired in January.
The Justice Department found Boeing had broken the terms of the agreement on Tuesday, allowing federal prosecutors to file new judicial charges against the business.
Paul Cassell, an lawyer who is representing many of the people who lost loved ones in the Max wrecks, said the Justice Department’s choice was” a good first step, and for the people, a long time coming”.
Boeing disputed the Justice Department’s findings following their release on Tuesday.
A Boeing spokesperson stated in a statement that” we think we have adhered to the terms of that agreement and look forward to the opportunity to respond to the Department on this issue.” ” As we do so, we will engage with the Department with the utmost transparency, as we have throughout the entire term of the agreement, including in response to their questions following the Alaska Airlines 1282 accident”.
Following the fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019, federal prosecutors charged Boeing with one count of fraud, alleging that the company had not told the Federal Aviation Administration about a new Max plane software. An error with that system, the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System, or MCAS, caused two planes to nosedive shortly after takeoff, killing 346 people.
In the 2021 deferred prosecution agreement, Boeing , agreed to pay$ 2.5 billion, as well as to review and update its policies around safety and compliance with federal regulators. It consented to establish an ethics and compliance program to stop any violations of American fraud laws and give the Justice Department regular updates on its progress.
Federal prosecutors claimed Boeing “failed to design, implement, and enforce a compliance and ethics program to prevent and detect violations of the U.S. fraud laws throughout its operations” on Tuesday, according to a letter sent to the families who lost loved ones in the crashes and shared with The Seattle Times.
Boeing is subject to prosecution by the United States for any federal criminal offenses of which the United States has knowledge for not fully resolving the terms and obligations under the DPA, according to the letter.
Boeing has 30 days to respond to the Justice Department in order to “explain the nature and circumstances of such breach, as well as the steps ( Boeing ) has taken to address and remedy the situation.”
Boeing has until June 13 to respond.
Federal prosecutors have until July, six months after the deferred prosecution agreement’s expiration, to determine if Boeing breached additional terms of the agreement, according to the letter. In that time, Boeing can continue to conduct “potential misconduct” investigations.
The Justice Department is set to , meet with the families of those who died in the crash , on May 31 to discuss its decision and “potential next steps”.
Cassell, the attorney representing the victims ‘ families, said he’d still like to see “further action” to hold Boeing accountable. He intends to use the upcoming meeting with federal prosecutors to “explain in more detail what we believe would be a satisfactory remedy for Boeing’s ongoing criminal conduct.”
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