Family of Boeing aircraft safety whistleblower files wrongful death lawsuit: ‘He broke’

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC/Gray News) - Almost a year after the death of a Boeing whistleblower in South Carolina, the mega-aircraft manufacturer is facing a wrongful death lawsuit for allegedly breaking the former employee.

John Barnett, 62, was found dead March 9, 2024, inside his truck with a gunshot wound to his head outside the Holiday Inn located at 301 Savannah Highway. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Charleston County Coroner’s Office determined Barnett’s death to be a suicide.

Barnett, who worked for Boeing for 32 years, filed a whistleblower complaint, alleging safety concerns with their Charleston facility.

The United States Department of Labor was working through the discovery phase of its investigation and was set to begin hearings on that complaint.

Filed in South Carolina District Court on Wednesday, the lengthy lawsuit accused Boeing of driving Barnett to his death after he suffered repeated retaliation, a hostile work environment and bullying. The lawsuit states the constant bullying caused John’s PTSD, anxiety, panic attacks and depression which in turn caused his suicide.

After leaving Boeing, John repeatedly tried to move on with his life. The lawsuit states “however, on March 9, 2024, the weight of years of Boeing’s harassment, abuse and humiliation became too much for John to bear, and he took his own life on what was to be the third day of his deposition in the AIR21 case. Boeing had threatened to break John and break him it did.”

An example listed in the filing included a hearing before the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs on June 18, 2024, concerning Boeing’s “Broken Safety Culture.

One of John’s senior managers called him 19 times within an 8-hour period in late October 2016, then 21 times within 8 hours a few days later, documents state.

The senior manager told John “I am going to push you until you break.” Senator Blumenthal told Boeing’s former CEO David Calhoun that Boeing was successful and that “John broke.”

On several occasions, Barnett had reported about the company using substandard parts and oxygen systems with serious problems. Barnett reportedly alerted managers who took no action to fix the issues and Boeing denied Barnett’s claims, according to reports.

The 146-page lawsuit cites specific examples of retaliation and humiliation Barnett faced from Boeing. Even once he had left the company, Barnett feared that the issues he had complained about while working at Boeing had not been resolved and would someday result in a catastrophic event.

“His fears were soon realized,” the lawsuit says when Boeing planes continued to malfunction and crash in recent years.

On March 4, 2024, just days before Barnett’s deposition in Charleston against Boeing, he was seen by a mental health counselor. Barnett had attempted to increase his anxiety medications as he reported ongoing nightmares involving people dying in airplanes, documents state.

The following is an excerpt from the wrongful death lawsuit alleging Boeing’s responsibility in Barnett’s death:

“Whether or not Boeing intended to drive John to his death or merely destroy his ability to function, it was absolutely foreseeable that Boeing’s conduct could result in PTSD and John’s unbearable depression, panic attacks and anxiety, which would in turn lead to an elected risk of suicide. Boeing may not have pulled the trigger, but Boeing’s conduct was the clear cause and the clear foreseeable cause of John’s death. ”

Barnett filed a lawsuit against the company years before his death, alleging retaliation against him from Boeing management as a result of his whistleblower complaint. The lawsuit is still ongoing.

Boeing has released a comment following the lawsuit.

“We are saddened by John Barnett’s death and extend our condolences to his family,” the statement says.

Barnett’s original retaliation lawsuit against the company is still ongoing, with depositions still taking place.

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