CHARLESTON, S.C. — The circle of relatives of a former Boeing high quality management supervisor who police say took his lifestyles after a number of days of wondering by means of corporate attorneys over his efforts to show what he mentioned had been defects in jumbo jets sued the plane maker Thursday.
Boeing subjected John Barnett to a “marketing campaign of harassment, abuse and intimidation supposed to deter, discredit and humiliate him till he would both surrender or be discredited,” attorneys for the circle of relatives wrote in a wrongful loss of life lawsuit filed in federal court docket in South Carolina.
Barnett, 62, shot himself March 9, 2024, in Charleston after answering questions from legal professionals for a number of days. He lived in Louisiana.
“Boeing had threatened to damage John, and smash him it did,” the legal professionals wrote in court docket papers.
Boeing has no longer but spoke back in court docket filings.
“We’re saddened by means of John Barnett’s loss of life and prolong our condolences to his circle of relatives,” the corporate mentioned in a observation this week.
Barnett used to be an established Boeing worker and labored as a quality-control supervisor sooner than he retired in 2017. Within the years after that, he shared his considerations with reporters and turned into a whistleblower.
Barnett mentioned he as soon as noticed discarded steel shavings close to wiring for the flight controls that may have lower wiring and brought about a disaster. He additionally famous issues of up to 1 / 4 of the oxygen techniques on Boeing’s 787 planes.
Barnett shared his considerations along with his supervisors and others sooner than leaving Boeing, however consistent with the lawsuit they spoke back by means of ignoring him after which harassing him.
Boeing deliberately gave Barnett faulty, deficient process evaluations and not more fascinating shifts, consistent with the lawsuit. Barnett’s circle of relatives argues the corporate publicly blamed him for delays that angered his co-workers and avoided him from moving to any other plant.
Barnett sooner or later used to be recognized with PTSD and his psychological situation deteriorated, his circle of relatives mentioned.
“Whether or not or no longer Boeing supposed to power John to his loss of life or simply damage his skill to serve as, it used to be completely foreseeable that PTSD and John’s insufferable melancholy, panic assaults, and nervousness, which might in flip result in an increased possibility of suicide,” the lawsuit mentioned. “Boeing won’t have pulled the cause, however Boeing’s habits used to be the transparent motive, and the transparent foreseeable motive, of John’s loss of life.”
The lawsuit does not specify the quantity of damages sought by means of Barnett’s circle of relatives however asks for reimbursement for emotional misery and psychological anguish, again pay, 10 years of misplaced long run profits in addition to bonuses, well being bills and his misplaced lifestyles insurance coverage advantages.
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EDITOR’S NOTE — This tale comprises dialogue of suicide. The nationwide suicide and disaster lifeline is to be had by means of calling or texting 988. There could also be a web-based chat at 988lifeline.org.
