Berthet cried tears of joy for what she saw as a small victory in a five-year battle and prayed to her daughter Camille. She called her son and her mother, and got on Zoom to celebrate with the other families who had lost loved ones in the Max crashes. Speaking with The Seattle Times on Zoom at nearly 3 a.m. Wednesday, she said she was ready to go dance in the streets.

“This is the first time we have hope,” Berthet said.

Boeing disputed the Justice Department’s findings and said it had “honored the terms of that agreement.” The company has 30 days to respond to the findings to “explain the nature and circumstances” of the violations and any steps it has taken to remedy the concerns, according to the deal.

In a letter to a district judge in Texas, where the deal was signed, the Justice Department said it is “determining how it will proceed in this matter.”

But, for the families who lost loved ones in the Max crashes, the letter feels like a significant turning point, as it is unclear why the Justice Department would find Boeing had breached the agreement if not to pursue new sanctions against the company.

Aftermath

Immediately after Camille’s death, Berthet avoided the news for months.

She was used to her daughter being gone for long stretches of time — Camille worked in humanitarian aid and would return home to Paris for 10-day visits between assignments — but they messaged each other every day. Losing Camille was like losing a part of herself.

One month later, Berthet’s father and sister were diagnosed with cancer. Her sister recovered but her father never did. He died last summer.

Though years separate their passings, Berthet believes that the loss of his granddaughter contributed to her father’s death. As she sees it, he lost some of his will to fight the disease. “This is the aftermath,” she said.

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