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☆ Boeing 737 Max crash families say planemaker should face much higher fine
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Families for some of the 346 people killed in two fatal Boeing 737 Max crashes said on Wednesday a U.S. judge should reject the planemaker's proposed plea deal with the Justice Department and the government should seek a much higher fine. Spokespeople for Boeing and the Justice Department did not immediately comment on the families' filings. The DOJ told Boeing earlier this month it could accept a settlement that branded the planemaker a felon or fight the charge in court. The Justice Department has a separate criminal probe ongoing into the Alaska Airlines jet that was missing four key bolts. The company's board -- including new CEO -- must meet with the victims' families within four months of sentencing.

Persons: Nadia Milleron, Samya Stumo, Dennis Muilenburg, Hart, Paul Cassell, Cassell, Adrian Vuckovich, Max Organizations: Ethiopian Airlines, Boeing, Senate Commerce, Science, Justice Department, DOJ, The, Department, Alaska Airlines Locations: Indonesia, Ethiopia

☆ How Boeing defrauded the United States and escaped with a slap on the wrist
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-13 | by ( Chris Isidore | Pete Muntean | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Boeing agreed to plead guilty to a charge that it defrauded the Federal Aviation Administration, hiding crucial information about a design flaw on the 737 Max during its original certification process. Boeing attorneys had it as part of their mission to make sure that its executives did not face any criminal charges, Lindquist said. A Boeing spokesman said the company had no comment about the anticipated guilty plea or the case beyond a brief statement confirming the agreement. Another way to make executives payEven if there are no criminal charges brought against executives, they can face significant penalties, Arlen said. Why Boeing will keep its government contractsThe most serious penalty that Boeing could face is by far the least likely – it could be barred from federal government contracts due to its guilty plea.

Persons: Critics, ”, Peter Goeltz, Goeltz, “ I’m, Moody’s, Paul Cassell, Jemal Countess, “, Mark Lindquist, Lindquist, FAA ”, Mark Forkner, ” Lindquist, there’s, that’s, Arlen, Dave Calhoun, Dennis Muilenburg, Calhoun, Max, Patrick Ryder, Robert Clifford, – CNN’s Natasha Bertrand Organizations: New, New York CNN, Boeing, Federal Aviation Administration, National Transportation Safety Board, CNN, ”, Alaska Airlines, Justice Department, FAA, Volkswagen, University of Utah, Ethiopian Airlines, Max, Alaska Air, DOJ, “, Department of Defense, Pentagon, Air Force, Department of Justice, they’re Boeing Locations: New York, Alaska, Indonesia

☆ Boeing agreed to plead guilty to a fraud conspiracy charge over the 737 Max saga, but it isn't out of the woods just yet
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-08 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewBoeing has agreed to plead guilty to one count of fraud conspiracy, the Justice Department said in a Sunday court filing. In May, the Justice Department said Boeing failed to "design, implement, and enforce a compliance and ethics program." AdvertisementSunday's plea deal will see Boeing pay an additional $243.6 million — the same criminal penalty as in 2021. Advertisement"This sweetheart deal fails to recognize that because of Boeing's conspiracy, 346 people died," he said in a statement. Government contractsBy pleading guilty to fraud conspiracy, Boeing will have committed a felony — jeopardizing its government contracts.

Persons: —, it's, Paul Cassell, Sunday's, Richard Blumenthal Organizations: Service, Boeing, Justice Department, DoJ, Business, Alaska Airlines, Street Journal, FBI

☆ Boeing's big mea culpa just dropped and it doesn't look pretty
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-08 | by ( Kwan Wei Kevin Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Last week, Bloomberg reported that federal prosecutors had offered Boeing the choice of either accepting the plea deal or risk facing trial. Under the plea deal, Boeing will have to pay a fine of $243.6 million. This is on top of the $243.6 million Boeing had already paid as part of the 2021 settlement it breached. Related storiesPaul Cassell, an attorney for 15 of the victims' families, told BI on Monday that he has filed an objection to the plea deal. "A judge can reject a plea deal that is not in the public interest, and this deceptive and generous deal is clearly not in the public interest."

Persons: —, Paul Cassell, " Cassell Organizations: Service, Boeing, Justice Department, Business, Bloomberg, BI, Max, DOJ, Federal Aviation Administration, Company Locations: Indonesia, Ethiopia

☆ Justice Department Is Said to Offer Boeing Plea Deal Over 737 Max Crashes
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-30 | by ( Niraj Chokshi | More About Niraj Chokshi | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Justice Department plans to offer Boeing a plea deal related to a pair of fatal crashes involving its 737 Max plane more than five years ago, but the agreement would fall short of what families of the victims of those crashes had sought, a lawyer representing the families said on Sunday. In a statement, the lawyers described the offer as a “sweetheart plea deal” and said that it would not force Boeing to admit fault in the deaths of the 346 people who died in the crashes in late 2018 and early 2019. “The families will strenuously object to this plea deal,” Paul G. Cassell, a lawyer representing families and a University of Utah law professor, said in the statement. He added, “The memory of 346 innocents killed by Boeing demands more justice than this.”The deal would include a fine, three years of probation and the appointment of an external monitor, Mr. Cassell said. The Justice Department was meeting with the families on Sunday afternoon.

Persons: ”, ” Paul G, Cassell Organizations: Department, Boeing, Cassell, University of Utah, The Justice

☆ Boeing will get a ‘sweetheart’ plea deal, says lawyer representing 737 Max crash victims
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-30 | by ( David Goldman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

They and some of the families they represent were briefed by the Justice Department Sunday about the plea deal. Bloomberg first reported the potential plea deal Sunday. Boeing will have by the end of the week to determine whether to accept the plea deal or go to trial. The deadline for the Justice Department to file criminal charges in the case is July 7. Cassell said the families were upset that the Justice Department deal excluded the prosecution of individuals at Boeing.

Persons: Max, ”, Robert Clifford, Boeing’s, Judge Reed O’Connor, ” Clifford, Paul Cassell, Cassell, ” Cassell Organizations: CNN, US Justice Department, Boeing, Ethiopian, Max, Justice Department Sunday, Cassell, Bloomberg, Department of Justice, Justice Department, Alaska Airlines

☆ Boeing committed ‘the deadliest corporate crime in US history’ and should be fined $24 billion, victims’ families say
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-19 | by ( Jordan Valinsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —Families that lost loved ones in two Boeing 737 Max crashes said on Wednesday that the company committed the “deadliest corporate crime in US history” and asked the Justice Department to fine the company the maximum $24 billion it could face in a criminal trial. The families wrote to the Department of Justice asking for the fine as the US government considers criminal prosecution of Boeing. The letter also asks the Justice Department for an independent corporate monitor to oversee Boeing’s safety measures and to direct it in its efforts to improve its quality. The 2021 deferred prosecution agreement that Boeing reached with the Justice Department was harshly criticized by the family members and some members of Congress at that time. Boeing agreed to pay $2.5 billion, but most of that money - $1.77 billion – was paid to the airlines that owned the grounded planes, money that Boeing had already agreed to pay.

Persons: Max, Dennis Muilenburg, ”, Paul Cassell, “, Dave Calhoun, – CNN’s Evan Perez Organizations: New, New York CNN, Boeing, Justice Department, Department of Justice, The Justice Department, Department, Alaska Airlines, DOJ, Republican, Democratic, FAA Locations: New York, Indonesia, Ethiopia, Alaska

☆ Boeing may be prosecuted after breaking safety agreement that prevented criminal charges for 737 crashes, US DOJ says
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( Evan Perez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —The US Justice Department on Tuesday notified Boeing that it breached terms of its 2021 agreement in which the company avoided criminal charges for two fatal 737 Max crashes. The notification comes as the Justice Department conducts a new investigation into Boeing’s operations in the wake the door plug incident. The earlier deal had resolved a fraud investigation related to the company’s development of its 737 Max aircraft. Under its deferred prosecution agreement from January 2021, Boeing paid $2.5 billion in penalties and promised to improve its safety and compliance protocols. In March, the FAA identified more potential safety issues with the engines of the 737 Max and 787 Dreamliner.

Persons: Max, “, Reed O’Connor, Biden, Paul Cassell, ” Cassell, ” Organizations: CNN, US Justice Department, Boeing, Alaska Airlines, Department of Justice, Justice Department, Max, Lion, Justice, Air Force, Transportation Safety Board, Federal Aviation Administration, FAA Locations: United States, Fort Worth , Texas

☆ Taylor Swift's bad fashion isn't bad taste. It's strategy.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Savannah Bradley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

AdvertisementIn December, Taylor Swift — Time's Person of the Year — glittered in front of the camera in a black bodysuit, a floor-skimming chenille dress, and a studded bustier gown. Crafting Swift's public imageThe Swiftian brand philosophy revolves around one essential idea: Taylor Swift is everyone's best friend. These choices are attainable, predictable, and unthreatening — purchases made by your best friend during a mall shopping spree. Lauren Sherman , Fashion Correspondent at Puck News , astutely labeled Swift's style as "Anthropologie Gone Wild" — mismatched, outdated, pedestrian, but instinctual. He's been running his own fashion brand for 20 years .

Persons: Taylor Swift, —, inoffensive, Swift, Jean Paul Gaultier, She's, doesn't, J, Lauren Sherman, astutely, Sherman, Swift's, Joseph Cassell Falconer, bedazzled Zuhair Murad bodysuits, Cookie Cohen, Taylor, Cohen, Yves Saint Laurent, they're, Kevin Mazur, Pharrell, Louis Vuitton, Rihanna, He's, Angelina Jolie Organizations: Service, Chiefs, Balmain, Urban Outfitters, Fashion, Puck, Swift, The New York Times, MTV Locations: Zara

☆ Alan Dershowitz called for the release of Epstein court documents. In them, Virginia Giuffre alleges they had sex at least 6 times.
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-10 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | Jacob Shamsian | Haven Orecchio-Egresitz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

In her deposition, Giuffre claimed she and Dershowitz had sex at least 6 times as she was trafficked by Epstein. In the deposition, Giuffre alleges that she and Dershowitz were introduced while Jeffrey Epstein trafficked her as a teenager. To Dershowitz, 'the case is over'Since their settlement, Dershowitz has softened his public statements regarding Guiffre while maintaining his innocence regarding her allegations. When news that the related court documents would be unsealed, Dershowitz publicly called for the complete release of all related documents, claiming they'd prove his innocence. The unsealed deposition, Dershowitz told BI "shows the origin" of how he came to be "framed" for crimes against Guiffre.

Persons: Virginia, Alan Dershowitz, Dershowitz, they'll, Giuffre, Epstein, —, Jeffrey Epstein's, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, Jeffrey Epstein, Paul Cassell, Brad Edwards, Edwards, she'd, who's, Jeffrey, Guiffre, Cassell, Sarah Ransome, Ransome, Ransome didn't, countersued, Mr, they'd, I've, Jefferey Epstein, Virginia Giuffre, Sharon Churcher, Churcher, Alan, Prince Andrew ., Let's, She's Organizations: Service, Cassell, Harvard, Palm Beach Police, CIA, Trump, Clinton, Wikileaks, Daily, Guiffre, Daily Mail, JE Locations: Virginia, Guiffre

☆ Opinion | America’s Shift Away From Religion
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-03 | by ( ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

To the Editor:Re “Americans Are Losing Their Religious Faith,” by Nicholas Kristof (column, Aug. 24):Mr. Kristof writes that Americans’ loss of faith results from religious scandals and the bad behavior of “charlatans” such as Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson. The trend is a problem, he argues, because religion is central to our country’s social capital. First, Americans are also becoming less religious because there is zero evidence to support any of the central claims religious institutions make about God and the supernatural. And second, what worries me is not that people are less religious, but that they transfer their blind faith in religion and religious leaders to charismatic politicians like Donald Trump. But Americans aren’t losing their underlying spiritual and religious beliefs; they are defining and seeking connections to “higher powers” in other ways.

Persons: ”, Nicholas Kristof, Mr, Kristof, Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, Donald Trump, Mark K, Cassell Washington, aren’t Organizations: charlatans, Cassell, Kent State University

On Sunday, Evergrande reported losses of 33 billion yuan ($4.53 billion) for the first half of the year, versus a 66.4 billion yuan loss in the same period a year earlier. The Chinese property sector’s worsening debt crisis poses a significant challenge for President Xi Jinping and his policy makers, with the country’s economy already reeling from weaker domestic and overseas demand. China’s State Council Information Office, which handles media queries on behalf of the government, declined to comment on the property market and Evergrande’s fate. He sold the first complex the following year for 80 million yuan, according to Evergrande’s website. The committee investigated the matter after banks seized 13.4 billion yuan ($1.84 billion)of deposits held by the property-services unit in 2021.

Persons: Aly, Hui Ka Yan, Hui, Evergrande, Suppliers haven’t, ”, Anne Stevenson, Yang, Evergrande’s, Xi Jinping, Reuters wasn’t, Kelly Richmond Pope, ” Hui, “ Evergrande, Stevenson, Engen Tham, Julie Zhu, Clare Jim, Cassell Bryan Organizations: China Evergrande Group, REUTERS, Rights, China Evergrande, HK, Reuters, Suppliers, J Capital Research, Information Office, Political, Conference, Guangzhou Evergrande, soccer’s, Hong, Forbes, HengTen Networks, Management, Chicago’s DePaul University, Evergrande, Financial, Communist Party, “, China, Shanghai, Cassell, Low, Thomson Locations: China, Shenzhen, Guangdong province, Rights SHANGHAI, HONG KONG, United States, U.S, China’s, Henan province, Beijing, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Evergrande, HengTen, Evergrande’s Hong Kong, Shanghai

☆ Meet the designer who made Taylor Swift's Eras tour ballgown that has 200,000 hand-sewn sequins and crystals
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Bridal company Nicole + Felicia Couture designed a ball gown for Taylor Swift's Eras Tour. Founder Nicole Chang said she relies on celebrity partnerships, not ads, to build the brand. Among her show-stopping looks was a sparkly gold ball gown with 200,000 hand-sewn sequins and crystals, created by bridal company Nicole + Felicia Couture. Swift wore a bespoke ball gown by Nicole + Felicia on her Eras Tour. After Swift debuted her gold gown on tour, Nicole + Felicia's Instagram video of the design process drew more than 19,000 views.

Persons: Nicole, Felicia Couture, Taylor, Nicole Chang, —, Swift, Felicia, Bob Levey, Getty, Blake Lively, Chang, Amy Chen, Chrissy Teigen, Paris Hilton, Gwen Stefani, Halle Bailey, Chen, Bailey, Joseph Cassell Falconer, it's, we've Organizations: Service, PR Locations: Taiwan, Glendale , Arizona, Paris

☆ Special Report: Dozens of babies die in orphanage as Sudan war takes grim toll on Khartoum
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Maggie Michael | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +13 min

[1/7] A view from inside an orphanage in Khartoum, Sudan, in this handout image released April 20, 2023. There was no one there,” said Abdullah, speaking by phone from the orphanage, the cries of wailing babies audible in the background. Frini and the director of the orphanage, Zeinab Jouda, referred questions about the total death toll to Abdullah, Mygoma’s medical chief. ABANDONED CHILDRENOfficially called The Orphan's Care Centre, Mygoma, the orphanage is housed in a three-storey building in central Khartoum. She said that a day earlier, two babies who died were instead buried in a city square close to the orphanage.

☆ Opinion | Death and the City
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Thomas B. Edsall | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

“Some have hypothesized that the rise in homicide rates is specifically a result of the June 2020 protests,” Chalfin and MacDonald wrote, but “theories about the role of the protests must contend with several challenges. The data also pinpoint the timing of the spikes to late May 2020, which corresponds with the death of George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis and subsequent anti-police protests — protests that likely led to declines in law enforcement. Although unemployment caused by Covid surged in April, there was little if any increase in murders at that time. That is the challenge that every city should be grappling with. Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook, Twitter (@NYTopinion) and Instagram.

They said two in five people seeking food assistance in the Atlanta region this year have not done so before. In central Ohio, the local food bank says the number of households seeking aid has increased by nearly half since last year. Craig Gundersen, a Baylor University economics professor who is a prominent researcher for Feeding America, said that food banks experiencing spikes above COVID levels are outliers. The Highland Food Pantry in Winchester, Virginia, said it served about 90 families a week during the pandemic. In early April, White visited a community center to donate old clothes and noticed a line for the food pantry.

That man was the military commandant of Balakliia, a key figure in Russia’s six-month occupation of the eastern Ukrainian town. Town residents knew the commandant only by his call sign of “Granit,” the Russian word for granite, as Reuters reported in an October investigation into Moscow’s withdrawal from the town. One of the documents listed Valery Sergeyevich Buslov as among the Russian officers present in Balakliia, stating his role was military commandant. He has served as the Kaliningrad garrison’s military commandant, responsible for maintaining discipline among troops and sailors stationed there, according to a 2019 military newspaper article. By May, the military commandant had arrived in Balakliia, according to Oleksandr, one of the two female residents and another local woman.

☆ Italian drugs cartels conceal payments via Chinese shadow banks
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Emilio Parodi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +10 min

[1/3] Seized drugs are seen following an investigation on drugs cartels operating in Italy increasingly using shadow networks of unlicensed Chinese money brokers to launder their proceeds in this handout photo obtained by Reuters on April 4, 2023. Carabinieri/Handout via REUTERSMILAN, April 6 (Reuters) - Drugs cartels operating in Italy are increasingly using shadow networks of unlicensed Chinese money brokers to conceal cross-border payments, according to Italian judicial and law enforcement authorities. U.S. authorities have said Chinese “money brokers” represent one of the most worrisome new threats in their war on drugs, as a Reuters investigation in 2020 found. Chinese authorities have previously vowed to crackdown on underground banking. One of the first probes to come to light involving use of Chinese money brokers by Italian mobsters was linked to the Calabrian ‘Ndrangheta group, one of the largest crime gangs in the world.

☆ Inside Ukraine’s scramble for “game-changer” drone fleet
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Max Hunder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +10 min

It is hoping that domestic drone makers like AeroDrone will help it meet its ambitious goals. The government is now working with more than 80 Ukraine-based drone manufacturers, Ukraine's Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov told Reuters. RUSSIAN TERRITORYThe range and potency of Ukraine's drones is a sensitive issue. Danilov, the national security council head, acknowledged Ukraine’s reliance on other countries for more high-tech drone components. "We are trying to fulfil our needs in this sector with domestic production, but we realise that it's unlikely we will be able to fulfil everything," he said.

Two lawmakers with knowledge of the exports and two former officials said the approvals reflected Britain’s increased willingness to support Taiwan. One of the lawmakers, who also spoke on the condition of anonymity, said authorising the export licences amounted to giving a "green light" to better equip Taiwan. It shows the government authorised 25 export licences to Taiwan during the first nine months of 2022 under the categories "components for submarines" and "technology for submarines." Taiwan has for decades been unable to buy conventional submarines from other countries because of their concerns of angering China. Asked about the decision to approve the increase in export licences, the official said: "You just don't do something like this without thinking through the implications very carefully."

☆ The Justice Department investigated Jeffrey Epstein's death. Then it went silent.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +25 min

Jeffrey Epstein's death in a federal jail was seen as a shocking Justice Department failure. But more than three years later, the office still hasn't released its report into the circumstances of Epstein's death. "We all took it by surprise," Mark Epstein told Insider. Barr tasked the Justice Department's inspector general, Michael Horowitz, and the FBI with investigating "the circumstances of Mr. Epstein's death." Mark Epstein told Insider that he spoke to his brother about once a month in the years before his death.

MALATYA, Turkey, March 4 (Reuters) - The Trend Garden Residence, an upscale serviced apartment building in the Turkish city of Malatya, boasted a gym, freshly-furnished rooms and a roof-top cafeteria. Erdogan, who has led Turkey since 2003, said following the disaster that building standards have improved under his watch. Among those arrested as part of the Trend Garden probe is Engin Aslan, according to the government officials. Corporate records show he is the majority owner of a Turkish company that, according to land registration documents, owns the building. A spokesperson for the Yesilyurt district municipality, where Trend Garden was located, declined to comment about the building’s registration history.

☆ Judge Denies Boeing 737 MAX Families’ Request to Reject DOJ Deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Dylan Tokar | Andrew Tangel | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +3 min

A federal judge in Texas denied a request by families of those killed in two 737 MAX crashes to throw out or modify a two-year-old settlement between Boeing Co. and the U.S. Department of Justice. “This court has immense sympathy for the victims and loved ones of those who died in the tragic plane crashes resulting from Boeing’s criminal conspiracy,” Judge O’Connor wrote in his ruling. The decision by Judge O’Connor is his third substantive ruling on the legal challenge launched by the 737 MAX victims’ relatives group. The judge last year ruled that the families of those who died in the 2018 and 2019 crashes were victims of the safety failures outlined by prosecutors. In January, Judge O’Connor presided over an arraignment the families had requested.

Downing Street referred requests for comment to the business ministry, which oversees Companies House, Britain’s public registry of companies. And, in most cases, if foreign companies purchased the property before 1999 or hold UK property in a trust they don’t need to publicly disclose the beneficial owners. The Cyprus-based company, A. Corp Trustee Limited, wasn’t listed on Britain’s new property register as of Tuesday morning. A listing on the UK’s new property register for Hanley Limited identifies the beneficial owner as a Swiss company called Pomerol Capital Sa. Ravellot also wasn’t on the new property register.

☆ The best companies will prioritize 'proactive rest'—not just PTO—in 2023, say HR experts
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Jennifer Liu | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

In 2023, working for a company that offers a few days of paid time off isn't going to cut it. The best employers out there will instead focus on pushing "proactive rest," HR experts say. "It's still a valuable tool, but proactive rest is more than that." After all, U.S. companies are notorious for offering paltry paid time off to workers, and even employees who have it are terrible at actually taking their days. Some companies are playful in how they roll out proactive rest.

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