Today was a good day for the victim’s families in the B737 Max crashes and Clifford Law firm, and a devastating day for the perpetrator in this crime, Boeing.
Clifford Law started its fight for the victim’s families after Boeing was offered a plea bargain in August.
The federal district court judge overseeing the criminal conspiracy matter against Boeing in the crashes of two 737 MAX8 jets that killed 346 people rejected the plea agreement presented by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), with the judge taking particular issue with the corporate monitor requirements outlined in the plea agreement.
That means that Boeing still may have to face criminal charges at a trial for the deaths of those killed.
U.S. District Court Judge Reed O’Connor wrote in a 12-page opinion today (Dec. 5, 2024) that over the last three years, “it is fair to say the government’s attempt to assure [Boeing’s] compliance has failed.”
“Judge O’Connor’s emphatic rejection of the plea deal is an important victory for the families in this case and, more broadly, crime victims’ interests in the criminal justice process,” said Paul Cassell, attorney for the families in this case and professor of the S.J. Quinney College of Law at the University of Utah. “No longer can federal prosecutors and high-powered defense attorneys craft backroom deals; they just expect judges to approve them. Victims can object – and judges will respond when they have good reasons for striking a plea.”
Cassell said, “Judge O’Connor has recognized that this was a cozy deal between the Government and Boeing that failed to focus on the overriding concerns – holding Boeing accountable for its deadly crime and ensuring that nothing like this happens again in the future. This order should lead to a significant renegotiation of the plea deal to reflect the 346 deaths Boeing criminally caused and put in place proper monitoring of Boeing to ensure that it never again commits a crime like this in the future.”
The plea deal of July 24 that is at issue called for Boeing to plead guilty to a single charge of conspiracy to defraud the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) during the certification process of the Boeing 737 MAX8 of a new software system so that a less rigorous level of training for pilots would get the aircraft to market faster. Judge O’Connor’s ruling today rejects the entire plea deal that also included an additional monetary penalty of $243.6 million.
The families are crime victims by this court under the federal Crime Victims’ Rights Act.
