Boeing President and CEO Dave Calhoun departs after testifying at a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing to investigate “Boeing's flawed safety culture” on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., June 18, 2024.
Samuel Corum | AFP | Getty Images
U.S. prosecutors are consulting with Boeing relatives and victims of the deadly crash as a July 7 deadline approaches for the Justice Department to decide whether the plane maker should face criminal charges. This was reported by two people familiar with the case and correspondence seen by Reuters.
Justice Department officials met with Boeing lawyers on Thursday to discuss the government’s finding that the company violated a 2021 agreement with the department, one of the sources said. That deal, known as a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA), had shielded it from criminal prosecution after two 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people.
In addition, federal prosecutors will meet with the victims' relatives on Sunday to update them on the progress of their investigation, the second person said. U.S. officials are working on a “tight timeline,” according to an email sent by the DOJ and reviewed by Reuters.
Boeing lawyers at Kirkland & Ellis presented their case to officials in the deputy attorney general’s office on Thursday, arguing that prosecution would be unwarranted and there is no reason to tear up the 2021 deal, one of the sources said.
Such requests from companies the DOJ has in its sights are common in negotiations to end a government investigation.
Officials are seeking input from family members as they consider how to proceed, the email said. Prosecutors from the Justice Department's criminal fraud division and the U.S. attorney's office in Dallas will attend Sunday's meeting, the email said.
Spokespeople for the Justice Department and Boeing declined to comment.
Boeing has previously said it has complied with the “terms” of the settlement and has formally notified prosecutors that it disagrees with the finding that it violated the agreement.
U.S. prosecutors have recommended that senior Justice Department officials bring criminal charges against Boeing after finding the planemaker violated a 2021 settlement. Two people familiar with the matter previously told Reuters.
The two parties are discussing a possible solution to the Justice Department's investigation. There is no guarantee that authorities will file charges, they said last week.
The deliberations will follow on a January 5th Mid-Flight Panel an explosion on a Boeing plane just two days before the company's DPA expired. The incident highlighted ongoing safety and quality issues at Boeing.
Boeing was on the verge of avoiding prosecution on a criminal charge alleging conspiracy to defraud the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as a result of the deadly 2018-2019 crashes.
Prosecutors agreed to drop a criminal charge as long as Boeing reviewed its compliance practices and filed regular reports for a three-year period. Boeing also agreed to pay $2.5 billion to settle the investigation.
In May, officials determined the company violates the agreement, causing Boeing to be sued. The DOJ said in a court filing in Texas that the aircraft maker had failed “to design, implement and enforce a compliance and ethics program to prevent and detect violations of U.S. fraud laws in its operations.”
