New York (AFP) – The Justice Department said Friday it reached a preliminary agreement with Boeing to settle a long-running criminal probe into deadly 737 MAX crashes, drawing condemnation from some crash victim families.
Under an "agreement in principle," Boeing will pay $1.1 billion and the Department of Justice (DOJ) would dismiss a criminal charge against Boeing over its conduct in the certification of the MAX, DOJ said in a federal filing.
A judge must approve the accord, which would scuttle a criminal trial scheduled for June in Fort Worth, Texas.
The agreement would resolve the case without requiring Boeing to plead guilty to fraud in the certification of the MAX, which was involved in two crashes in 2018 and 2019 that claimed 346 lives.
Family members of some MAX victims slammed the proposed settlement as a giveaway to Boeing.
"The message sent by this action to companies around the country is, don't worry about making your products safe for your customers," said Javier de Luis in a statement released by attorneys for plaintiffs suing Boeing.
"This kind of non-prosecution deal is unprecedented and obviously wrong for the deadliest corporate crime in US history," said Paul Cassell, an attorney representing relatives of victims. "My families will object and hope to convince the court to reject it."
But the DOJ, in its brief, cited other family members who expressed a desire for closure, quoting one who said "the grief resurfaces every time this case is discussed in court or other forums."
Family members of more than 110 crash victims told the government "they either support the Agreement specifically, support the Department's efforts to resolve the case pre-trial more generally or do not oppose the agreement," the filing said.
The DOJ filing called the accord "a fair and just resolution that serves the public interest."
"The Agreement guarantees further accountability and substantial benefits from Boeing immediately, while avoiding the uncertainty and litigation risk presented by proceeding to trial," it said.
Boeing declined to comment when contacted by AFP.
Friday's proposed agreement marks the latest development in a marathon case that came in the wake of the two crashes that tarnished Boeing's reputation and contributed to leadership shakeups at the aviation giant.
The case dates to a January 2021 DOJ agreement with Boeing that settled charges that the company knowingly defrauded the Federal Aviation Administration during the MAX certification.
The 2021 accord included a three-year probation period. But in May 2024, the DOJ determined that Boeing had violated the 2021 accord following a number of subsequent safety lapses.
Boeing agreed in July 2024 to plead guilty to "conspiracy to defraud the United States."
But in December, federal judge Reed O'Connor rejected a settlement codifying the guilty plea, setting the stage for the incoming Trump administration to decide the next steps.
Under Friday's proposed accord, Boeing "will admit to conspiracy to obstruct and impede the lawful operation of the Federal Aviation Administration Aircraft Evaluation Group."
But this acknowledgment "doesn't carry any criminal penalties," said Carl Tobias, a professor at the University of Richmond School of Law.
"You don't have that kind of stigma or retribution or whatever it is that we think of as deterring that behavior," Tobias said. "It's a slap on the wrist."
Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat who held hearings into Boeing's problems in 2024, condemned the agreement as an "outrageous injustice" to victims and the public.
"After repeatedly rebuffing responsibility and lying, Boeing will now permanently escape accountability," Blumenthal said. "Victims, families, and the flying public deserve better. They deserve justice, not this sham."