A jury in Miami found that Tesla was partly to blame for a fatal 2019 crash that killed a young woman and severely wounded her boyfriend. It was the first federal trial involving a fatal crash linked to Tesla’s Autopilot mode.
The verdict, which came down on Friday, found that Tesla and its self-driving technology were 33% responsible for the crash, with the remainder of the blame falling on the driver, George Brian McGee, The New York Times reported. Tesla could be forced to pay as much as $243 million to the parents of the deceased woman, Naibel Benavides, and her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo — but Elon Musk’s electric vehicle company said it would appeal the jury’s verdict.
“Today’s verdict is wrong and only works to set back automotive safety and jeopardize Tesla’s and the entire industry’s efforts to develop and implement lifesaving technology,” Tesla said.
“Florida law is explicit that punitive damages have been all but eliminated in product liability cases such as this one,” the company added. “We are confident that the punitive damage award at a minimum, and likely this whole verdict, will be overturned by the appellate court.”
The crash at the center of the case took place on April 25, 2019, when McGee was driving his Tesla Model S near Key Largo, Florida, and blew through an intersection at 62 mph, crashing into a black SUV that was legally parked on the side of a dirt road near the intersection. The Tesla was in Autopilot mode at the time of the crash, but McGee had his foot on the accelerator, which overrides Autopilot mode. Before he reached the intersection, McGee dropped his phone and bent down to look for it, and told police that he did not see the intersection or the stop sign.
McGee said on the stand that he thought Tesla’s Autopilot mode would protect him from a crash.
Lawyers representing the plaintiffs in the federal trial argued that Musk and Tesla have exaggerated Tesla’s Autopilot technology.
“The Tesla car is a good car,” attorney Brett Schreiber said, according to the Miami Herald. “It’s the Autopilot that will kill you.”
During the trial, Schreiber also quoted Musk, who has said that Tesla’s autopilot system is safer than a human driver.
Tesla’s lawyers pinned the entire blame for the crash on McGee, who was on his phone for 13 minutes before the crash, and was driving at varying speeds. Joel Smith, a lawyer representing Tesla, said McGee was “reckless” and “aggressive,” adding that “no car could have prevented” the crash. Smith also pointed to Tesla’s owner’s manual, which states, “It is the drivers’ responsibility to stay alert, drive safely and be in control of the vehicle.”
The jury’s verdict comes as Tesla looks to roll out self-driving robotaxis on American streets. The first robotaxis hit the road for testing in Austin, Texas, in June.
