Families of Boeing crash victims hope judge will side with them in federal court, forcing company to stand trial

By Web Staff

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    NORTH TEXAS (KTVT) — In a major federal case unfolding in North Texas, families whose loved ones were killed in two Boeing 737 MAX crashes are seeking criminal prosecution.

Families of Boeing crash victims want accountability More than a dozen families whose loved ones were killed in two Boeing 737 MAX crashes spoke in court on Wednesday.

They are fighting against the U.S. government’s motion to dismiss a felony conspiracy charge against Boeing in connection with the deadly crashes.

The 2018 and 2019 crashes killed 346 people combined. Prosecutors charged Boeing with conspiracy to commit fraud, accusing the company of misleading regulators about a flight control system linked to the crashes. In an agreement reached with the Department of Justice, Boeing agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government for misleading regulators who approved pilot-training standards for the Max last year instead of going to trial.

“I just need them to see what they’ve done, to look us straight in the eye and see the devastation that they have caused to all our families, and to look at the photographs, because this is all we have left,” said Naoise Connolly Ryan, whose husband died in one of the crashes.

Boeing’s $1.1 billion deal with Justice Department over 737 MAX crashes The agreement reached between Boeing and the Justice Department would dismiss the felony conspiracy charge, allowing the company to avoid criminal prosecution if Boeing pays $1.1 billion, compensates the families and makes internal safety changes.

But Judge Reed O’Connor, a chief United States district judge for the Northern District of Texas, rejected the deal, forcing the company and Justice Department to renegotiate. O’Connor ruled that the Justice Department violated the rights of relatives of the Indonesia and Ethiopia crash victims by not consulting them before approving the deal with Boeing.

The Justice Department says the $1.1 billion deal delivers immediate safety reforms and “meaningful accountability” without the risk of losing at trial.

Attorney, families want Boeing to stand trial

Paul Cassell, the lead attorney representing 14 victims’ families, says he wants the judge to appoint a special prosecutor to take the case to trial.

“Boeing shouldn’t be able to buy its way out of accountability, and they should be forced to stand trial,” Cassell said.

“If these people have any heart or any conscience, they should walk away from having met with us, having spoken to us, having listened to us, and decide that the way we do things is not the way it should be done,” Connolly Ryan said. “We need to turn this company around, and we need to do things differently because people’s lives matter, safety matters, and that’s what they have to prioritize, not profits.”

Despite it being an emotional day, families said they are optimistic and hope O’Connor will side with them. He wrapped up court on Wednesday, saying a decision will come in due course.

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