Today is
Thursday June 04, 2026
GROVETON, Texas (KETK) – Two women were arrested on Friday after Trinity County Sheriff’s Office deputies found illegal drugs inside a home in Groveton.
East Texas officials warn of ISIS terror threats on Easter services
According to the sheriff’s office, deputies were working within Groveton city limits on Friday in an attempt to serve a burglary warrant. While attempting to locate the suspect for that warrant at a home on Sunset Road in Groveton, deputies found evidence that the house was being used to distribute illegal drugs.
The sheriff’s office then secured a search warrant for the home and searched the location. Inside the home they found baggies, 15 grams of suspected “crystal like” narcotics, drug paraphernalia and unused packaging materials.
“Once that warrant was executed, it became clear this wasn’t just somebody’s house… it was a full time bad decision factory,” Trinity County Sheriff Woody Wallace said.
Two women were arrested following the deputies’ search of the home. Heaven Porter was arrested for manufacture and delivery of between 4 and 200 grams of a controlled substance. Melanie Casier was arrested for manufacture and delivery of between 1 and 400 grams of a controlled substance. Both have been booked into the Trinity County Jail.
The burglary warrant suspect was arrested later for the charge of burglary of a habitation.
“Turns out you can run for a while, but eventually you run out of road in Trinity County,” Wallace said. “Let this be a reminder… if you are operating a drug business, you might want to consider a different line of work. Because around here, we do not offer business licenses for that kind of operation… just jail space.”
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration said Friday it is combining two agencies that were separated in the aftermath of the 2010 Gulf oil spill. The Interior Department said the overhaul would increase efficiency and speed up permitting for offshore oil and gas drilling.
The new Marine Minerals Administration will bring together the functions of the current Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said. Doing so will enable a “streamlined approach” that will maintain existing regulatory protections and rigorous safety standards, he said.
The combined agency will “deliver clearer coordination, better service to the public and stronger, more integrated oversight of offshore energy development,” Burgum said in a statement.
The new name is reminiscent of the old Minerals Management Service, which for decades was the federal agency responsible for overseeing offshore drilling. In April 2010, a deadly explosion destroyed BP’s Deepwater Horizon drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 people and discharging nearly 5 million barrels of crude oil into the sea over the next three months in the largest offshore oil spill in U.S. history.
Lawmakers from both parties and outside critics accused the agency of lax oversight of drilling and cozy ties with industry. A 2008 report by the Interior Department’s inspector general said employees accepted gifts, steered contracts to favored clients and engaged in drug use and sex with employees of the energy firms they regulated.
The head of the agency resigned in May 2010 — less than a year into her tenure — under public pressure as the Obama administration moved to impose stricter control over drilling in the wake of the spill.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement replaced the disbanded Minerals Management Service in 2011. The former agency’s revenue management function was also separated into a new office. The Obama administration said the reorganization was designed to remove the complex and sometimes conflicting missions of the former agency.
BOEM oversees development of oil and gas, as well as renewable energy and mining on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf, while BSEE enforces safety and environmental regulations.
Environmental groups slammed the reorganization as a replay of the agency’s troubled past.
The MMS was intentionally split up after the Gulf spill because regulators were too cozy with industry and “we couldn’t trust the integrity of their work,” said Miyoko Sakashita, oceans director at the Center for Biological Diversity.
The new set-up “sounds like yet another handout to the oil industry that will fast-track risky projects. It sure won’t make the people or wildlife on our coasts any safer,” she wrote in an e-mail Friday.
The National Ocean Industries Association, which represents offshore developers, said that two separate — yet overlapping — government agencies responsible for administering the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act can understandably result in inconsistencies and delays.
“Bringing them back together should result in closer coordination and a more efficiently functioning government, for the benefit of American citizens who rely upon the energy produced from the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf to fuel our economy and lift society,” Association President Erik Milito said in a statement.
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McDermott reported from Providence, Rhode Island.
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The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.
TYLER — Country music band Little Texas will take center stage at the 38th annual Tyler Cattle Baron’s Ball on June 27, bringing star power to one of the region’s biggest fundraisers for the American Cancer Society at the W.T. Brookshire Conference Center. According to our news partner KETK, this year’s gala features a venue change, moving to the conference center after being hosted at the Texas Rose Horse Park in previous years. Over nearly four decades, the Tyler Cattle Baron’s Ball has raised millions locally to support cancer research and families in East Texas.
“Our East Texas community has united to raise over $18.5 million for the American Cancer Society. This incredible achievement is a direct result of the generosity of our donors, supporters and volunteers,” American Cancer Society Staff Partner Melissa Ivey said.
The country music group Little Texas is known for the song “God Bless Texas.” The band has specific ties to the East Texas region, as two of its members were born and raised in Longview.
PAYNE SPRINGS, Texas (KETK) — More than 12 hours after a boat carrying three people capsized on Cedar Creek Lake, emergency crews continue an intensive search for a missing man feared to have drowned.
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department said three men were fishing on Cedar Creek Lake near Payne Springs on Thursday at around 10:30 p.m. when their boat took on water and capsized. Two men made it to shore and contacted emergency crews.
The third individual, a 42-year-old man, tried to swim to shore. Witnesses reported hearing him call for help, but he could not be found.
The Payne Springs Fire and Rescue said a resident assisted by launching a pontoon boat, transporting firefighters and other residents to begin an initial surface search while additional rescue boats were on their way.
Payne Springs Fire and Rescue conducted a surface and an underwater search before being assisted by the Texas Game Wardens. Search efforts continued until 2 a.m. Friday morning.
Search crews, including Texas Game Wardens, are on the lake on Friday looking for him. However, the search is being hindered by weather conditions and water depth, the department stated.
EAST TEXAS — The average base pay for public school teachers in East Texas remains among the lowest, as salaries across the state have dropped in the past five years, a study reports. In a study conducted by the University of Houston Education Research Center, researchers found that the average base pay of traditional public school teachers dropped in the 2024-2025 school year from $66,449 to $62,715, after seeing an increase the year prior.
According to the study, teacher base pay averaged $69,205 from the 2014-2015 school year to 2020-2021. Since then, the average has stayed “considerably lower” at $65,699.
Average Base Pay of Traditional Public School Classroom Teachers (in Constant 2024 Dollars), 2014–15 through 2024–25. Courtesy of the University of Houston Education Research Center.
Two educational service regions encompass East Texas and they have some of the lowest averages across the state. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – Texas College has named Dr. SherRhonda Gibbs as their next president, making history as the Tyler institution welcomes its first-ever woman president. Gibbs is currently employed as the Dean of the Business and Economics Division at Morehouse College and has previously worked at the Monfort College of Business at the University of Northern Colorado, the University of Southern Mississippi’s School of Management and at Jackson State University.
She has her PhD in Business Administration – Management and has also worked as a software engineer with the Mayo Clinic and IBM. During her tenure at Morehouse, she helped raise more than $30 million to support student real estate, entrepreneurship, asset management, finance and professional development programs.
“The selection of Dr. SherRhonda Gibbs represents a defining moment for Texas College. Her visionary leadership, commitment to student success and record of transformative impact position her to lead this institution into a bold and prosperous future. We are glad to welcome her as our next President,” Texas College board chair Bishop Lawrence Reddick III said.
Current Texas College President Dr. Dwight J. Fennell will end his tenure with the historically Black college on June 30. Gibbs will start her tenure as president of Texas College on July 1.
TENNESSEE COLONY – Seven people have been arrested for their alleged involvement in a scheme to bring meth into the Mark W. Michael state prison in Tennessee Colony. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) and the Texas Board of Criminal Justice’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) said they conducted a “high intensity interdiction operation” at the Michael Unit in January after they learned that drones were used to deliver large amounts of contraband into the prison.
During the operation, TDCJ said more than 100 cellphones, a large amount of meth, synthetic cannabinoids and other drugs were reportedly found in the prison.
“This operation underscores both the risks posed by contraband and the strength of our response,” TDCJ Executive Director Bobby Lumpkin said. “We will remain relentless in our fight to stop illegal narcotics from entering and harming those in our facilities.” Read the rest of this entry »
LUFKIN — The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) is offering a $4,000 reward for information that will lead to the arrest of a Lufkin man who is currently on the Texas 10 Most Wanted Sex Offender List. According to the DPS and our news partner KETK, Jacarlos Mark has been wanted by the Lufkin Police Department since 2025 for failure to comply with sex offender registration requirements in relation to a sexual assault of a minor conviction he received in 2003.
Mark is described by the DPS as 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighing about 240 pounds. He has several tattoos on his neck, chest and both legs.
To be eligible for the $4,000 reward, information must be provided to the authorties thorough one of the following methods: Call the Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-252-TIPS (8477), submit a web tip through the DPS website by selecting the fugitive in relation to the tip and then clicking on the link under their picture or submit a Facebook tip by clicking the “SUBMIT A TIP” link (under the “about” section)
RUSK COUNTY — After being extradited from an Arkansas jail to Rusk County, the newly released arrest documents outline what investigators say led a man to allegedly kill his wife with an axe. According to our news partner KETK, on March 18, around 2 p.m., Rusk County dispatch received a call from a family member of Scott Thompson. The family member reported that Thompson had claimed he had “killed his wife with an axe, left her in the hallway, and locked her in the trailer,” according to the affidavit.
When deputies arrived, they knocked repeatedly but received no answer. They observed “blood through the backdoor window in the hallway leading to the kitchen area,” and under “exigent circumstances,” the deputies forced entry into the house. A deputy found Thompson’s wife, Amanda Thompson, deceased and with wounds consistent with sharp force trauma to the back of her head, according to the affidavit.
Investigators quickly identified Scott as a suspect who had left the residence shortly before deputies arrived. Surveillance footage helped authorities determine the vehicle he was driving, and they were able to obtain his phone number. Tracking data indicated he was traveling toward Arkansas. Read the rest of this entry »
EL PASO (AP) – The Afghan man had fled the Taliban for refuge in upstate New York when U.S. immigration authorities ordered him deported to Uganda. The Cuban woman was working at a Texas Chick-fil-A when she arrested after a minor traffic accident and told she was being sent to Ecuador.
There’s the Mauritanian man living in Michigan told he’d have to go to Uganda, the Venezuelan mother in Ohio told she’d be sent to Ecuador and the Bolivians, Ecuadorians and so many others across the country ordered sent to Honduras.
They are among more than 13,000 immigrants who were living legally in the U.S., waiting for rulings on asylum claims, when they suddenly faced so-called third-country deportation orders, destined for countries where most had no ties, according to the nonprofit group Mobile Pathways, which pushes for transparency in immigration proceedings.
Yet few have been deported, even as the White House pushes for ever more immigrant expulsions. Thanks to unexplained changes in U.S. policy, many are now mired in immigration limbo, unable to argue their asylum claims in court and unsure if they’ll be shackled and put on a deportation flight to a country they’ve never seen.
Some are in detention, though it’s unclear how many. All have lost permission to work legally, a right most had while pursuing their asylum claims, compounding the worry and dread that has rippled through immigrant communities.
And that may be the point.
“This administration’s goal is to instill fear into people. That’s the primary thing,” said Cassandra Charles, a senior staff attorney with the National Immigration Law Center, which has been fighting the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda. The fear of being deported to an unknown country could, advocates believe, drive migrants to abandon their immigration cases and decide to return to their home countries.
Things may be changing.
In mid-March, top Immigration and Customs Enforcement legal officials told field attorneys with the Department of Homeland Security in an email to stop filing new motions for third-country deportations tied to asylum cases. The email, which has been seen by The Associated Press, did not give a reason. It has not been publicly released, and DHS did not respond to requests to explain if the halt was permanent.
But the earlier deportation cases? Those are continuing.
An asylum-seeker says she’s in panic over possibly being sent to a country she doesn’t know
In 2024, a Guatemalan woman who says she had been held captive and repeatedly sexually assaulted by members of powerful gang arrived with her 4-year-old daughter at the U.S.-Mexico border and asked for asylum. She later discovered she was pregnant with another child, conceived during a rape.
In December, she sat in a San Francisco immigration courtroom and listened as an ICE attorney sought to have her deported.
The ICE attorney didn’t ask the judge that she be sent back to Guatemala. Instead, the attorney said, the woman from the Indigenous Guatemalan highlands would go to one of three countries: Ecuador, Honduras or across the globe to Uganda.
Until that moment, she’d never heard of Ecuador or Uganda.
“When I arrived in this country, I was filled with hope again and I thanked God for being alive,” the woman said after the hearing, her eyes filling with tears. “When I think about having to go to those other countries, I panic because I hear they are violent and dangerous.” She spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing reprisal from U.S. immigration authorities or the Guatemalan gang network.
There have been more than 13,000 removal orders for asylum-seekers
ICE attorneys, the de facto prosecutors in immigration courts, were first instructed last summer to file motions known as “pretermissions” that end migrants’ asylum claims and allow them to be deported.
“They’re not saying the person doesn’t have a claim,” said Sarah Mehta, who tracks immigration issues at the American Civil Liberties Union. “They’re just saying, ‘We’re kicking this case completely out of court and we’re going to send that person to another country.’”
The pace of deportation orders picked up in October after a ruling from the Justice Department’s Board of Immigration Appeals, which sets legal precedent inside the byzantine immigration court system.
The ruling from the three judges -– two appointed by Attorney General Pam Bondi and the third a holdover from the first Trump administration — cleared the way for migrants seeking asylum to be removed to any third country where the U.S. State Department determines they won’t face persecution or torture.
After the ruling, the government aggressively expanded the practice of ending asylum claims.
More than 13,000 migrants have been ordered deported to so-called “safe third countries” after their asylum cases were canceled, according to data from San Francisco-based Mobile Pathways. More than half the orders were for Honduras, Ecuador or Uganda, with the rest scattered among nearly three dozen other countries.
Deported migrants are free, at least theoretically, to pursue asylum and stay in those third countries, even if some have barely functioning asylum systems.
Deportations have been far more complicated than the government expected
Immigration authorities have released little information about the third-country agreements, known as Asylum Cooperative Agreements, or the deportees, and it’s unclear exactly how many have been deported to third countries as part of asylum removals.
According to Third Country Deportation Watch, a tracker run by the rights groups Refugees International and Human Rights First, fewer than 100 of them are thought to have been deported.
In a statement, DHS called the agreements ”lawful bilateral arrangements that allow illegal aliens seeking asylum in the United States to pursue protection in a partner country that has agreed to fairly adjudicate their claims.”
“DHS is using every lawful tool available to address the backlog and abuse of the asylum system,” said the statement, which was attributed only to a spokesperson. There are roughly 2 million backlogged asylum cases in the immigration system.
But deportations clearly turned out to be far more complicated than the government expected, restricted by a variety of legal challenges, the scope of the international agreements and a limited number of airplanes.
Mobile Pathways data, for example, shows that thousands of people have been ordered deported to Honduras — despite a diplomatic agreement that allows the country to take a total of just 10 such deportees per month for 24 months. Dozens of people ordered to Honduras in recent months did not speak Spanish as their primary language, but were native speakers of English, Uzbek and French, among other languages.
And while hundreds of asylum-seeking migrants have been ordered sent to Uganda, a top Ugandan official said none have arrived. U.S. authorities may be “doing a cost analysis” and trying to avoid dispatching flights with only a few people on board, Okello Oryem, the Ugandan minister of state for foreign affairs, told The Associated Press.
“You can’t be doing one, two people” at a time,” Oryem said. “Planeloads -– that is the most effective way.”
Many immigration lawyers suspect that the March email ordering a halt in new asylum pretermissions could indicate a shift toward other forms of third-country deportations.
“Right now they haven’t been able to remove that many people,” said the ACLU’s Mehta. “I do think that will change.”
“They’re in a hiring spree right now. They will have more planes. If they get more agreements, they’ll be able to send more people to more countries.”
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Associated Press reporters Garance Burke in San Francisco, Joshua Goodman in Miami, Rodney Muhumuza in Kampala, Uganda, Marlon González in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, and Molly A. Wallace in Chicago contributed to this report.
SMITH COUNTY – Tyler teenagers, Brandon Young, 18, and Andru Davis, 18, were identified by investigators to be directly involved in the fatal Club Exotic shooting in March, and were believed to be at a known address in Houston. Brandon Young, a suspect originally arrested for engaging in criminal activity and deadly conduct in the shooting, was additionally charged with capital murder on Tuesday. According to the Smith County Sheriff’s Office, Young’s bond has been set at $1,000,000 and he remain in the Smith County jail. The case continues to be under investigation.
Andru Davis, wanted for capital murder, was brought from Harris County to the Smith County Jail on Friday, March 27 and is being held on a $1.5 million bond.
Anyone with information is urged to submit a tip to the Tyler-Smith County Crime Stoppers by calling 903-597-2833 or through cuff903.org for a $1,000 cash reward.
TYLER, Texas (KETK) — A surge of interest in Texas’ new school choice program means thousands of families may be left waiting. A record 274,183 students applied for Texas Education Freedom Accounts ahead of the March 31 deadline, far exceeding the program’s available funding, according to state leaders.
In East Texas alone, 8,855 applications were submitted by families with students currently enrolled in local school districts. With funding expected to cover only about 100,000 students statewide, officials say a lottery system will determine who receives the education accounts.
What ‘school choice’ means for Texas children’s futures
The program allows families to use state funds for alternatives to public education, including private school tuition and homeschooling expenses. Priority will be given to students with disabilities and those from lower-income families.
East Texas School Districts
SCHOOL DISTRICT NUMBER OF APPLICANTS
Arp ISD 45
Athens ISD 148
Atlanta ISD 59
Big Sandy ISD 42
Brownsboro ISD 131
Bullard ISD 309
Canton ISD 77
Carthage ISD 32
Central ISD 51
Central Heights CISD 34
Chapel Hill ISD (Smith County) 246
Frankston ISD 31
Gilmer ISD 104
Gladewater ISD 70
Grand Saline ISD 45
Groveton ISD 32
Hallsville ISD 411
Harleton ISD 31
Harmony ISD 320
Henderson ISD 102
Hudson ISD 37
Huntington ISD 55
Jacksonville ISD 155
Jefferson ISD 85
Kilgore ISD 138
LaPoynor ISD 47
Lindale ISD 222
Linden-Kildare CISD 41
Livingston ISD 235
Longview ISD 585
Lufkin ISD 175
Mabank ISD 117
Malakoff ISD 31
Marshall ISD 368
Mt. Pleasant ISD 42
Mt. Vernon ISD 34
Nacogoches ISD 350
New Diana ISD 32
Palestine ISD 52
Pine Tree ISD 232
Pittsburg ISD 40
Pleasant Grove ISD 57
Quitman ISD 33
Rains ISD 61
Rusk ISD 109
Sabine ISD 34
Spring Hill ISD 92
Sulphur Springs ISD 191
Tatum ISD 39
Texarkana ISD 67
Trinity ISD 46
Troup ISD 51
Tyler ISD 1,736
Van ISD 113
Wells ISD 117
Whitehouse ISD 349
White Oak ISD 37
Wills Point ISD 79
Winnsboro ISD 63
Winona ISD 111
Yantis ISD 31
Data from The Texas Education Freedom Account
Families can expect results to begin rolling out later this month, with funding distributed starting in July.
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The Texas Education Freedom Account was created following the passage of Senate Bill 2 by the Texas Legislature. This bill allocated $1 billion in funding to help parents enroll their children in private schools or homeschool them.
These funds can be used for various education-related expenses, including academic assessments, private tutoring services, transportation to approved educational providers and meals offered by private schools.
For more information, people can visit the Texas Education Freedom Account website.
NACOGDOCHES, Texas (KETK) — A data security incident earlier this year at the Nacogdoches Memorial Hospital (NMH) may have disclosed patients’ personal information to an unauthorized party, the hospital reports.
Nacogdoches High School names new head football coach
According to the hospital, a cyber-attack on Jan. 31 compromised its computer network and information systems. Law enforcement was immediately notified and an investigation began, determining that an unauthorized party may have had access to personal patient information.
The following patient information may have been accessed:
Name
Address
Phone number
Email address
Social security number
Date of Birth
Medical record number
Medical account number
Health beneficiary number
Possible photograph image, if taken
The hospital reports that it is not aware of the misuse of anyone’s information from the incident, as of Tuesday.
Following the re-securing of the computer network, the hospital reinforced and enhanced its security.
“NMH takes the security of all information in its systems very seriously and wants to assure its patients that it has taken steps to prevent a similar event from occurring in the future,” the hospital said. “This includes implementation of remediation measures to prevent recurrence, to strengthen NMH’s network security, enhancing NMH’s cyber preparedness through additional awareness training, and updating NMH’s procedures.”
The hospital notified its patients by mail, including information on steps to protect their information. Anyone looking for additional information or recommendations on protecting personal information should visit the NMH website at nacmem.org, the hospital advises.
“We sincerely regret any concern or inconvenience that this matter may cause its patients and remain dedicated to protecting patients’ personal information,” the hospital said.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Department of Homeland Security is pausing the purchase of new warehouses intended to house immigrants as it scrutinizes all contracts signed under former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, according to a senior Homeland Security official.
The development comes just days after the new Homeland Security Secretary, Markwayne Mullin, was sworn in last week to lead a department that was steeped in controversy during Noem’s tenure but also central to President Trump’s mass deportation agenda.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. News of the pause was first reported by NBC News.
The official also said that warehouse purchases that were already made are also being scrutinized.
When asked about reports of the pause, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that “as with any transition, we are reviewing agency policies and proposals.”
The Department also noted that Mullin said during his confirmation hearing that he wanted to “work with community leaders” and “be good partners.”
Mullin inherited a $38.3 billion plan to boost detention capacity to 92,000 beds by acquiring eight large-scale detention centers, capable of housing 7,000 to 10,000 detainees each, and 16 smaller regional processing centers.
The plan was hatched during Noem’ s tenure but immediately ran into intense opposition around the country by residents and communities opposed to such large Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities in their neighborhoods.
Many objected on moral grounds to ICE’s presence in their neighborhoods, while others questioned whether the facilities would be a drain on local resources, such as sewer and water systems.
So far, 11 warehouses have been purchased in Arizona, Georgia, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas and Utah, with the federal government spending a combined $1.074 billion.
But lawsuits are pending in three of the states. Meanwhile, the capacity of at least one warehouse has been scaled back. Plans initially called for a warehouse in the Phoenix suburb of Surprise to be used as a 1,500-bed processing site, but Homeland Security now plans to cap occupied beds at 542, Surprise Mayor Kevin Sarter said during a news conference on Monday.
In many cases, mayors, county commissioners, governors and members of Congress learned about ICE’s ambitions only after the agency bought or leased space for detainees, leading to shock and frustration even in areas that have backed Trump.
The warehouse plan ran into challenges from the start. Eight deals were scuttled in places like Kansas City, Missouri, when owners decided not to sell.
Pressed on the lack of information during his confirmation hearing, Mullin acknowledged there had been issues.
“We’ve got to protect the homeland and we’re going to do that,” Mullin said. “But obviously we want to work with community leaders.”
Mullin, who took over and expanded his family’s plumbing business before representing Oklahoma in the U.S House and Senate, said that “one thing I do know is construction.”
He noted that most municipalities don’t have the capacity in their infrastructure for waste and water.
“So, it’s important that we’re talking to the communities and if we’re having additional needs, we can work with the cities,” he said at his confirmation hearing earlier this month.
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Hollingsworth reported from Kansas City, Missouri.
A federal appeals court has denied a request from dozens of families to reopen a criminal case against Boeing over two fatal 737 Max crashes more than seven years ago.
Lawyers for the families had argued that the U.S. Department of Justice failed to properly consult them before reaching a deal last year with Boeing that led a lower court to dismiss a criminal conspiracy charge against the company. The charge stemmed from allegations that Boeing misled federal regulators about a flight-control system linked to the crashes, which killed 346 people.
In a unanimous decision released Tuesday, a three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said it disagreed with the families’ claims that federal prosecutors had violated their rights under the Crime Victims’ Rights Act and therefore could not revive the case.
Paul Cassell, a lawyer for the families, called the ruling “badly flawed.”
“The victims’ families were never given a meaningful opportunity to shape the negotiations between the Justice Department and Boeing, dating back to 2020,” Cassell said in a statement.
The aircraft manufacturer declined to comment, but at a hearing last month in New Orleans before the appellate court, Boeing attorney Paul Clement said more than 60 other families “affirmatively supported” the deal and dozens more did not oppose it.
“Boeing deeply regrets” the tragic crashes, Clement had said, and “has taken extraordinary steps to improve its internal processes and has paid substantial compensation” to the victims’ families.
The deal allowed Boeing to avoid prosecution in exchange for paying or investing an additional $1.1 billion in fines, compensation to victims’ families, and internal safety and quality measures.
At the same hearing, federal prosecutors told the judges that the government has, for years, “solicited and weighed the views of the crash victims’ families as it’s decided whether and how to prosecute the Boeing Company.”
All passengers and crew died when the 737 Max jets crashed less than five months apart in 2018 and 2019 — a Lion Air flight that plunged into the sea off the coast of Indonesia and an Ethiopian Airlines flight that crashed into a field shortly after takeoff.
Catherine Berthet, whose daughter Camille Geoffroy was among the 157 killed in the second crash, said she is “sad and outraged” by the court’s decision. The ruling, she said in a statement, highlights the criminal justice system’s “inability to see where the public’s and passengers’ best interests truly lie.”
The case had taken many twists and turns. The Justice Department first charged Boeing in 2021 with defrauding the government but agreed not to prosecute if the company paid a settlement and took steps to comply with anti-fraud laws.
Federal prosecutors later determined in 2024 that Boeing had violated that agreement, and the company agreed to plead guilty to the charge. But U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor in Texas, who oversaw the case for years, rejected the plea deal and directed the two sides to resume negotiations.
The Justice Department returned last May with the new deal and a request to withdraw the criminal charge altogether, which O’Connor approved in November. Prosecutors argued that going to trial carried the risk that a jury might acquit Boeing entirely.
In dismissing the case, O’Connor said prosecutors hadn’t acted in bad faith and had explained their decision and met their obligations under the Crime Victims’ Rights Act.
O’Connor also said that case law prevented him from blocking the dismissal simply because he disagreed with the government’s view that the new deal with Boeing served the public interest.
The case centered around a software system that Boeing developed for the 737 Max, which airlines began flying in 2017. Boeing billed it as an update to its 737 family that wouldn’t require much additional pilot training.
But the Max did include significant changes — most notably, the addition of an automated flight-control system designed to help account for the plane’s larger engines. Investigators found that Boeing did not inform key Federal Aviation Administration personnel about changes it had made to the software before regulators set pilot training requirements for the Max and certified it for flight.
In both of the fatal crashes, that software pitched the nose of the plane down repeatedly based on faulty readings from a single sensor, and the pilots were unable to regain control.
“One can only hope that another Boeing crash won’t be the outcome of this badly flawed ruling,” Cassell, the lawyer for the families, said Tuesday.