Boeing guilty plea in crash case delayed as US Justice Dept finalises deal

By Madlin Mekelburg

US prosecutors said they need more time to finalise an agreement with Boeing Co. in which the planemaker will plead guilty to criminal conspiracy in connection with two fatal crashes of its 737 Max jetliner.
 

While the parties have made “substantial progress” towards finishing the deal, prosecutors said in a Thursday court filing that next Wednesday is the earliest they will be able to file a final draft. The government had planned to submit the deal to a federal judge in Fort Worth, Texas, this week for approval.

Earlier this month, Boeing agreed in principle to plead guilty to the fraud charge. Under the pact, the company faces additional criminal fines and will install a corporate monitor. It will also be required to spend at least $455 million to bolster its compliance and safety programs over the next three years. 

The plea agreement will allow Boeing to avoid a criminal trial after the Justice Department determined that the company breached a 2021 deferred-prosecution agreement over two fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019, which killed a combined 346 people. The DOJ had concluded Boeing failed to meet a requirement of that accord to implement an effective compliance program to prevent and detect violations of US fraud laws.

Families of the crash victims, who fought unsuccessfully to unwind the deferred-prosecution agreement, have filed a notice with the court indicating they plan to object to the terms of the latest deal.

The case is US v. Boeing, 21-cr-005, US District Court, Northern District of Texas (Fort Worth).