(Bloomberg) -- The US Justice Department plans to decide by May 28 whether Boeing Co. violated a deal the company struck to dodge a criminal charge related to the crashes of two 737 Max airplanes, according to an email sent to attorneys for the victims’ families.

The May 2 email sent by Justice Department Fraud Section chief Glenn Leon asked the lawyers whether they could meet in one of the last three days of the month to hear the prosecutors’ decision. The lawyers and any family members who want to attend plan to meet on May 31, according to people familiar with the matter.  

The Justice Department and Boeing declined to comment.

Leon and other DOJ officials met with family members last week in Washington to ask for input on their charging decision, telling them that they had not yet made up their minds whether to tear up the controversial agreement, which created a pathway for Boeing to avoid criminal charges for two crashes that killed 346 people.

Prosecutors have to decide by July 7 whether or not to file a motion to withdraw a criminal charge lodged against the company in 2021 in federal court in Fort Worth, Texas, or tear up the agreement and bring charges. It’s also possible they could extend the deferred prosecution agreement if they determine a violation occurred.

The April meeting, which reflected an effort by prosecutors to keep the victims’ families in the loop about their decision-making process, didn’t go well, according to attendees. Family members and their lawyers pummeled the prosecutors with questions about the 2021 pact, which they viewed as a “get out of jail free card” for the company and its top executives. 

Under the agreement, Boeing admitted to misleading its regulator, the Federal Aviation Administration, about changes made to its new jet, the 737 Max, and paid a criminal fine of $243 million. If the company cooperated fully with the government over a period of three years, prosecutors would move to get a fraud charge against the company dropped. Just before the three-year period expired, a Boeing door plug blew off an Alaska Airlines plane in mid-flight, forcing pilots to turn around and land. The Justice Department opened a criminal investigation.

Earlier: DOJ Convenes Grand Jury for Boeing Criminal Probe

The families demanded to know why the Alaska Airlines accident didn’t justify tearing up the deferred-prosecution agreement, but the prosecutors at the meeting didn’t give them any indication of their thinking. The department’s refusal to discuss how the 2021 agreement came about generated anger and frustration among the families.

“We are angry” at Justice Department prosecutors, said Catherine Berthet of France, who lost her daughter and attended last week’s meeting. “We are so angry. It’s not complicated. They just have to do their job.”

The final week of May is shaping up to be a critical one for Boeing, as it grapples with the aftermath of the near-catastrophic Alaska Airlines failure. The planemaker is also due to present a 90-day plan addressing safety and quality in its factories to the FAA.

The latest crisis engulfing Boeing has spurred Congressional hearings, a criminal inquiry and led to a management purge. Chief Executive Officer Dave Calhoun is planning to step down later this year after a successor has been found.

--With assistance from Chris Strohm and Julie Johnsson.

(Updates with more details from DOJ’s last meeting with victims’ families from fifth paragraph.)

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