Boeing executives unlikely to be charged for 737 Max jet crashes

By Greg Farrell and Allyson Versprille

Current or former Boeing Co. executives are unlikely to be prosecuted for two fatal crashes of the plane-maker’s 737 Max jet in 2018 and 2019, US Justice Department prosecutors told families of victims.

The five-year deadline for bringing criminal charges would likely doom any prosecution effort targeting individuals, department officials said during a meeting with families Friday two weeks after informing the company that it had violated the terms of a deferred-prosecution agreement signed in early 2021. The department also said it hasn’t made a decision on whether to charge Boeing. 

Robert Clifford, the lead lawyer in the families’ civil suit against Boeing in Chicago, urged the Justice Department at the meeting to put the company on trial this year.

“Boeing engaged in criminal conduct and should be properly prosecuted and penalized,” Clifford said at a press conference following the meeting.

Under the terms of the deferred-prosecution agreement, Boeing paid a $243 million criminal fine and admitted to deceiving the Federal Aviation Administration about the level of training needed to fly the new jet. The company also pledged to improve its internal controls and send regular reports of its progress to the Justice Department. In return, the government would withdraw its charge after three years if Boeing lived up to its promises in the agreement.

The department’s decision about what to do next will advance just one of the multiple legal threats Boeing now faces after a fuselage panel blew off a 737 Max mid-flight in January.

US prosecutors in Seattle have also sent subpoenas seeking documents and communications from Boeing and supplier Spirit AeroSystems Holdings Inc., which made the so-called door plug. The US Securities and Exchange Commission is scrutinizing Boeing’s comments about its safety practices after the Jan. 5 accident.

The government has given Boeing until June 13th to make the case that it has met its obligations, and that the deferred charge filed against it three years ago should be withdrawn. The Justice Department has a July 7 deadline to inform the federal judge overseeing the matter of its plans. 

“We believe that we have honored the terms of the agreement, and look forward to the opportunity to respond to the Department on this issue,” Boeing said in a statement. “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 accident on Jan. 5.”

The Justice Department declined to comment on the meeting. 

In the meeting, the DOJ officials said they didn’t think they could prove federal manslaughter and fraud involving aircraft parts beyond a reasonable doubt, according to a person who attended the meeting who asked not to be named. 

The person said the best option at this point may be for the families to push DOJ to move forward with the existing fraud charge and seek a sentence enhancement for the deaths that occurred from the 737 Max crashes.

During the meeting, DOJ wouldn’t say whether it planned to charge Boeing, said Mark Lindquist, who’s been an attorney for dozens of victim families in the two 737 Max crashes and is also representing passengers in the Jan. 5 accident. The department laid out four possible options from here:

• Do nothing, though attendees felt like that was highly unlikely;

• Extend the current agreement;

• Hash out a new agreement, potentially with new conditions;

• Prosecute Boeing for any known criminal offenses, including the prior charge or any additional ones DOJ has uncovered.

If Boeing is charged DOJ told the families possible penalties could include fines, forfeiture, restitution, and a federally appointed monitor, Lindquist said.