A Boeing whistleblower who was one of the first to raise an alarm about safety concerns at the company was found dead in South Carolina from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
John Barnett was in Charleston for a deposition in a lawsuit accusing Boeing of retaliating against him after he raised concerns about the design quality of some plane models. He appeared in court on Thursday and Friday and was going to finish the deposition on Saturday morning when he was found dead. The Charleston Police Department announced his death in a statement obtained by the New York Times.
“Detectives are actively investigating this case and are awaiting the formal cause of death, along with any additional findings that might shed further light on the circumstances surrounding the death of Mr. Barnett,” the statement said.
Robert Turkewitz and Brian Knowles, the attorneys representing Barnett in the case, expressed complete shock over the apparent suicide, saying there were no immediate signs he would do as much.
“John was in the midst of a deposition in his whistleblower retaliation case, which finally was nearing the end,” they said in a statement. “He was in very good spirits and really looking forward to putting this phase of his life behind him and moving on. We didn’t see any indication he would take his own life. No one can believe it.”
“We are all devastated,” they continued. “We need more information about what happened to John. The Charleston police need to investigate this fully and accurately and tell the public what they find out. No detail can be left unturned.”
His family was less skeptical, revealing in a statement sent to NPR that Barnett suffered from severe mental health problems over his treatment at Boeing.
“He was suffering from PTSD and anxiety attacks as a result of being subjected to the hostile work environment at Boeing,” they said, “which we believe led to his death.”
Boeing expressed its condolences over Barnett’s death.
“We are saddened by Mr. Barnett’s passing, and our thoughts are with his family and friends,” the company said in a statement.
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The timing of Barnett’s death immediately set off alarm bells among many, with some speculating that his death wasn’t a suicide. Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. cast doubt on the apparent suicide.
“John Barnett worked for Boeing for 32 years,” he said in a post on X. “The company worked to destroy his life after he exposed safety concerns. I’m proud that my sister Rory worked to tell his story in her award winning documentary Downfall: The Case Against Boeing. Boeing killed 346 people out of greed. Let’s hope there is a genuine investigation of John Barnett’s ‘suicide.’”
