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Federal Judge Dismisses GM Ignition Switch Criminal Case
A U.S. District Court judge in New York City has discharged a 3-year-old criminal lawsuit against General Motor Co. over defective ignition switches blamed for 124 deaths.
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A U.S. District Court judge in New York City has discharged a 3-year-old criminal lawsuit that charged General Motor Co. with wire fraud and concealing safety information about defective ignition switches blamed for 124 deaths, Reuters reports.
The decision completes a deal in 2015 between GM and the U.S. Attorney’s office in New York. Under the agreement, GM paid a $900 million fine and accepted three years of oversight by an outside monitor. Those three years have now been completed.
The devices can easily be jolted out of the “run” position, thereby turning off the car’s engine and disabling its power steering, power brakes and airbag system. GM began recalling 2.6 million older-model cars in 2014, several years after engineers identified the defect, to replace the switches.
Since then, GM has paid more than $2.6 billion in fines and victim restitution. The company says it has since developed new procedures to prevent a similar disaster.
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