The families of victims from two recent, horrific aircraft disasters continue to express their outrage and demand accountability. They think Boeing is on the verge of escaping any criminal prosecution for these tragedies. U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor in Texas shot down that agreement last December. This troubling decision begs the question, is anybody in Congress truly holding the aviation giant accountable?
On March 10, 2019, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 fell out of the sky minutes after departing Addis Ababa Airport. The crash killed 157 people. This most recent tragedy unfolded only a few months after Lion Air Flight 610 went down into the Java Sea off the coast of Indonesia in October 2018. That fateful event took the lives of 184 passengers and crew members. Each crash ignited fierce criticism of Boeing’s quality control over its 737 Max planes. Consequently, the entire fleet was grounded around the world for almost two years.
Since then, Boeing has been under heavy fire to bring back the company’s prestige and guarantee their products’ safety. As the discussion about what prosecutors ought to do when things go wrong proliferates, countless families feel that the imagined non-prosecution agreement doesn’t do enough to deter misconduct.
Sanjiv Singh—acting as the plaintiffs’ attorneys for 16 families of the crash victims. From the outset, he expressed alarm at the prospect that Boeing might escape criminal charges. We’re outraged at this abrupt potential withdrawal from criminal prosecution of Boeing. Our case against the non-prosecution agreement is morally repugnant. First, it does not provide the kind of penalties required to spur fundamental shifts in Boeing’s safety culture.
Singh’s statement makes clear the escalating frustration bursting to the surface on behalf of families. They argue that Boeing’s refusal to be held accountable will prevent necessary reforms from taking hold at the company. They contend that without tough consequences there is no motivation on Boeing’s part to improve safety practices.
The U.S. Justice Department has undergone profound transformation since the administration of former-President Donald Trump. Together, these shifts give cause for alarm about its commitment to holding big corporations accountable for their wrongdoing. In addition, there are critics who say the administration is going easy on large corporations. First and foremost is the concern around public safety.
The ramifications of these crashes extend beyond the immediate loss of life, affecting trust in aviation safety and regulatory oversight. Boeing can’t take these legal challenges lying down. The families of victims are becoming crusaders, fighting for justice and demanding accountability take priority.