SouthernWorldwide.com – A jury in Chicago has awarded $49.5 million in damages to the family of Samya Stumo, a 24-year-old American who died in a 2019 Boeing 737 MAX crash.
The lawsuit was filed by relatives of Stumo, who was among the 157 people killed in the Ethiopian Airlines crash in March 2019.
Court documents indicate that the jury deliberated for approximately two hours before determining the total damages suffered by the plaintiff to be $49.5 million.
While most civil lawsuits stemming from the crash have been settled out of court, Stumo’s family was unable to reach an agreement with Boeing prior to the trial, which commenced on Monday.
Boeing issued a statement expressing deep sorrow for the loss of loved ones on Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302.
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The company acknowledged that while nearly all claims have been resolved through settlements, families retain the right to pursue their claims in court, a right Boeing respects.
Samya Stumo was traveling to Kenya for her initial assignment with ThinkWell, a non-governmental public health organization focused on improving healthcare access in Africa and Asia.
However, the plane tragically crashed shortly after departing from Addis Ababa, resulting in the loss of all on board.
This crash occurred about four and a half months after a similar incident involving a Lion Air flight in Indonesia, which claimed the lives of 189 people.
The same Boeing model, the 737 Max 8, was involved in both fatal accidents.
Following these incidents, Boeing was compelled to ground its entire fleet of 737 Max aircraft for nearly two years to implement necessary system upgrades.
The company had previously faced a criminal fraud charge related to the crashes.
However, federal prosecutors agreed to drop the case after Boeing committed to paying over $1.1 billion in fines and an additional $445 million in compensation to the victims’ families.
This agreement also mandated Boeing to enhance its internal safety and quality control measures.
The settlement allowed Boeing to avoid criminal prosecution for allegedly providing misleading information to U.S. regulators about the 737 Max jetliner before the two crashes occurred.
