A federal court approved a plea agreement between Boeing and the U.S. Dept. of Justice, allowing the company to avoid prosecution over a charge of criminal conspiracy for failing to maintain a 2021 agreement – a settlement in which it avoided prosecution for its effort to deceive the Federal Aviation Administration in the 2017 certification of the 737 MAX aircraft.
It is the same court that late last year threw out the settlement under suspicion that the federal government would choose a competent monitor to oversee the agreement.
Families of passengers killed in two 737 MAX jet crashes also protested the DOJ settlement with Boeing.
The DOJ countered that families for more than 100 crash victims support resolving the case before it reaches trial, or have not opposed the settlement agreement.
This year the Department confirmed it reached an out-of-court agreement with Boeing, dropping its criminal fraud prosecution of the jet builder over the latter’s violation of the previous settlement and failure to ensure the safety and reliability of its 737 MAX aircraft. DOJ got Boeing to agree to a $487.2 million criminal fine, which amount includes credit for $243.6 million already paid in an earlier agreement.
Boeing’s penalties also include $444.5 million to establish a new fund for crash victims, and $445 million to be invested in compliance, safety, and quality programs. In all, according to DOJ, Boeing’s outlay from the new agreement total more than $1.1 billion.
In approving the settlement, U.S. District Court Judge Reed disputed DOJ’s claim that dismissing the case would serve the public interest, but noted he had no authority to reject the Department’s decision to settle with Boeing.
He added that the settlement "fails to secure the necessary accountability to ensure the safety of the flying public."
