On Monday (14), a trial began regarding a fatal accident allegedly caused by Tesla’s autopilot system.
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The crash, which occurred in 2019 in Key Largo, Florida (USA), killed 22-year-old student Naibel Benavides Leon, while her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo, was seriously injured.
In 2024, the families of both victims joined together to sue Tesla, claiming that the company’s autopilot system was defective because it failed to alert the driver, George McGee, that the road was ending while he looked down to retrieve his dropped cellphone.
Tesla’s autopilot system can brake and warn drivers about approaching obstacles, but it is designed to be used under the driver’s constant supervision. The company has denied any responsibility.
According to Tesla, the terms and conditions of the feature clearly state that the driver retains ultimate control when the system is engaged. “This crash had nothing to do with Tesla’s autopilot technology,” a company spokesperson said in a statement to the Times.
However, federal judge Beth Bloom, who will preside over the case in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, ruled last month that the jury may consider punitive damages against Tesla, including a financial penalty.
“A reasonable jury could find that Tesla acted with complete disregard for human life in developing its product and maximizing profits,” Bloom wrote in court documents.
It is worth noting that Tesla has won similar lawsuits in the past. In 2023, a state jury in California found the driver responsible for a crash involving the technology.
That same year, another California jury cleared Tesla of liability in a fatal accident where a man, allegedly using the company’s autopilot system, veered off the highway and crashed into a tree before the vehicle caught fire.
But the Key Largo case appears to be the first time a wrongful death lawsuit against Tesla, brought by third parties, will be tried before a federal jury, according to the plaintiffs’ attorneys.
Previous cases were brought either by drivers themselves or by their families. In this case, however, the lawsuit involves third parties who were dragged into the tragedy by an unaware driver.
Tesla is therefore arguing that it is “undisputed” that “this accident was caused solely by McGee’s conscious and deliberate decision to retrieve his phone while manually operating the vehicle,” according to court filings.
Photo and video: Unsplash. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
