Families of the 346 victims of the fatal Boeing 737 Max crashes are urging a US judge to reject the plane maker’s proposed plea deal with the Department of Justice. The deal involves Boeing pleading guilty to criminal fraud conspiracy charges and paying a fine ranging from $243.6m to $487m. The crashes occurred in October 2018 and March 2019, leading to the deaths of 189 and 157 people respectively.
Federal prosecutors alleged that Boeing misled regulators about a flight-control system implicated in the crashes, and the company agreed to pay a penalty as part of a deferred prosecution agreement. However, a recent incident involving a Max jetliner during an Alaska Airlines flight raised further safety concerns and led to the reopening of the possibility of prosecution by the Justice Department.
Lawyers representing the families of the victims argue that the proposed fine is inadequate and does not reflect the severity of Boeing’s actions. They believe that the fine should be higher to account for the lives lost and the harm caused. One lawyer described Boeing’s crime as potentially the deadliest corporate crime in US history.
Boeing and the Justice Department have not commented on the families’ filings. The families of the victims are pushing for a higher fine to be imposed on Boeing in order to bring justice to the 346 innocent lives lost in the fatal crashes.
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