US Prosecutors Recommended Justice Department To Criminally Charge Boeing After Violating Settlement Related To Fatal Crashes.

• US prosecutors are recommending to senior Justice Department officials that criminal charges be brought against Boeing.
• In May, officials determined the company breached a 2021 agreement that had shielded Boeing from a criminal charge of conspiracy to commit fraud.
• The US Justice Department must decide by July 7 whether to prosecute Boeing. 

US prosecutors have recommended to the senior Justice Department officials that Boeing Co. face criminal charges for violating a settlement related to two fatal crashes.

In January 2021, Boeing had reached a USD 2.5 billion settlement with the Justice Department to avoid prosecution on a single charge of fraud – misleading regulators who approved the 737 Max. Boeing blamed the deception on two relatively low-level employees.

The people didn’t specify what criminal charges Justice Department officials are considering. The charges could extend beyond the original 2021 fraud conspiracy charge, Reuters said, citing one of the people.

The federal agency determined in May that Boeing had breached the above mentioned 2021 deferred-prosecution agreement that was put in place after the 737 Max crashes, which killed 346 people in 2018 and 2019.

The two sides are in discussions over a potential resolution to the Justice Department's investigation and there is no guarantee officials will move forward with charges, the two sources said. 

The planemaker has denied the department’s findings, and the Justice Department now has until July 7 to decide what punishment, if any, the company should face.

Alternatively, instead of prosecuting Boeing, the DOJ could extend the 2021 settlement by a year or propose new, stricter terms, as per sources. 

Any Alternative to the Prosecution ?

• The Justice Department was able to seek prosecution of Boeing, which was charged with conspiracy to defraud the U.S., in May after federal officials said the company violated its 2021 prosecution agreement by “failing to design, implement and enforce a compliance and ethics program” made to detect and stop potential fraud violations.
• Instead of criminally prosecuting Boeing, the Justice Department could offer the aerospace company a deferred prosecution agreement requiring it to install an independent government watchdog tasked with keeping track of safety and quality control.
• The installation of a federal monitor to supervise safety improvements at Boeing could become a more efficient way to get the company to fall in line with safety and quality control improvements.

However, the internal Justice Department deliberations remain ongoing and no final decisions, known to the media, have been reached yet.

The manufacturing giant came under renewed scrutiny since a door-plug panel blew off a 737 Max jetliner during an Alaska Airlines flight in January. The company is under multiple investigations, and the FBI has told passengers from the flight that they might be victims of a crime.

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