Boeing crash victim families accuse company of "deadliest corporate crime"

• A mid-flight door-plug incident involving a 737 MAX 9 earlier this year as well as multiple recent misconduct allegations from former and current employees have also renewed criticism of the company.

Driving the news: The families are seeking "an aggressive criminal prosecution" of Boeing and a jury trial to be scheduled by mid-September, according to the letter obtained by Axios and previously reported by CNN.

• "Once Boeing is convicted at trial (or by pleading guilty "straight up" to the pending conspiracy charge), then it should receive a sentence reflecting its guilt for the deadliest corporate crime in U.S. history," says the 32-page letter sent by attorney Paul Cassell.

Zoom in: Cassell, representing 15 families, wrote that "a maximum fine of more than $24 billion is legally justified and clearly appropriate."

• But he said it could be "partially suspended if funds that would otherwise be paid are devoted to appropriate quality control and safety measures."

• The letter also demanded that Boeing's board of directors meets with the families, and that corporate executives face criminal prosecutions — including former CEO Dennis Muilenburg, who resigned after the two crashes.
• Boeing did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.

Zoom out: The letter comes a day after Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun said told senators that the company's culture is "far from perfect," but improving.

• Some families of the crash victims attended the hearing.

Go deeper: DOJ: Boeing breached 2021 safety agreement that prevented charges for crashes