Federal judge dismisses Boeing felony charges despite victims' families opposition to $1.1B settlement deal
A federal judge ruled in favor of the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Thursday, dismissing felony charges against aircraft giant Boeing in relation to two commercial plane crashes that claimed...
By Fox News · Fox News
A federal judge ruled in favor of the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Thursday, dismissing felony charges against aircraft giant Boeing in relation to two commercial plane crashes that claimed the lives of 346 people in Indonesia and Ethiopia. Judge Reed O’Connor accepted the DOJ's motion to dismiss in the Northern District of Texas. Boeing, which previously agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to defraud the government, made a deal with the Trump administration in May in return for the charges — tied to the Boeing 737 MAX 8 crashes in October 2018 and March 2019 — being dropped. O’Connor, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush, said that despite some victims' families' opposition, the government did not act with bad faith, provided conclusory reasons for its dismissal, and satisfied its obligations under the Crime Victims’ Rights Act, Politico reported . The non-prosecution agreement requires Boeing to pay more than $1.1 billion in fines, more than $455 million to strengthen the company’s compliance, safety and quality programs, and an additional $445 million for the crash victims’ families, a DOJ spokesperson told Fox News Digital. BOEING PAYING $1.1B AS DOJ DISMISSES CRIMINAL FRAUD CASE; FAMILIES OF VICTIMS IN CRASHES SET TO OBJECT TO DEAL "On top of the financial investments, Boeing must continue to improve the effectiveness of its anti-fraud compliance and ethics program and retain an independent compliance consultant," the spokesperson wrote in a statement to Fox News Digital. O'Connor noted it disregards the need for the company to be monitored by an unbiased consultant, as Boeing can choose who it hires, and said he understood families may be disappointed the agreement "fails to secure the necessary accountability to ensure the safety of the flying public," according to the report. Tracy Brammeier, partner of Clifford Law Offices who serves on the plaintiff's team, said there would be a quick appeal of O'Connor's Thursday ruling. "The judge rec…