Jury finds Tesla partly responsible for fatal autopilot crash in Florida

A jury has ruled that Tesla is partially liable for the death of Naibel Benavides Leon, who was struck and killed by a Tesla vehicle operating on Autopilot in Florida in 2019. The collision, which sent Ms. Benavides Leon flying 22 meters (75 feet) through the air, also left her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo, with serious injuries.

The crash occurred when driver George McGee, who admitted to being distracted by his phone at the time, ran a stop sign and a red light at an intersection in Key Largo while driving his Tesla Model S at approximately 62 mph. Although Mr. McGee accepted responsibility and previously reached a separate settlement with the victims’ families, jurors found that Tesla shared some of the blame, Caliber.Az reports per Sky News. 

Brett Schreiber, attorney for the victims, said: "Tesla designed Autopilot only for controlled-access highways yet deliberately chose not to restrict drivers from using it elsewhere, alongside Elon Musk telling the world Autopilot drove better than humans. Today's verdict represents justice for Naibel's tragic death and Dillon's lifelong injuries."

Tesla and CEO Elon Musk have announced plans to appeal the verdict, calling it "wrong" and a setback for automotive safety. The company warned the ruling could "jeopardise Tesla's and the entire industry's efforts to develop and implement life-saving technology."

Tesla maintained that Mr. McGee was solely responsible, stating, "To be clear, no car in 2019, and none today, would have prevented this crash. This was never about Autopilot; it was a fiction concocted by plaintiffs' lawyers blaming the car when the driver—from day one—admitted and accepted responsibility."

Plaintiffs' lawyers also accused Tesla of hiding or losing key evidence, including data and video from seconds before the crash. A forensic data expert hired by the plaintiffs uncovered the evidence, which Tesla later acknowledged had been mistakenly overlooked.

The jury ordered Tesla to pay $243 million in damages to Ms. Benavides Leon's family and to Mr. Angulo.

Legal experts say this verdict could prompt more lawsuits against Tesla. Miguel Custodio, a car crash lawyer not involved in the case, commented, "This will open the floodgates. It will embolden a lot of people to come to court."

The ruling arrives as Elon Musk prepares to launch a driverless taxi service, aiming to convince the public that Tesla vehicles can safely operate without human intervention. Despite improvements to Tesla’s driver assistance and partial self-driving features, the company recalled 2.3 million vehicles in 2023 amid concerns that Autopilot failed to adequately alert distracted drivers.

By Sabina Mammadli