Tesla Found Partly Liable in 2019 Autopilot Death

A Miami jury found [Tesla](https://www.wired.com/tag/tesla) partially liable Friday in a 2019 crash that killed one person and injured another—all while the driver of the Model S used the automaker’s [Autopilot driver assistance feature](https://www.wired.com/story/tesla-autopilot-risky-deaths-crashes-nhtsa-investigation/). The jury found Tesla liable for $200 million in punitive damages, plus an additional $43 million in compensatory damages. (Because of state laws, the company will likely end up paying less.) A jury found the automaker one-third responsible for the crash; it found the driver of the Tesla, who settled with the plaintiffs and testified during the trial, responsible for the other two-thirds. In a written statement, Tesla spokesperson Jeff McAndrews, said that the “verdict is wrong.” Citing “substantial errors of law and irregularities at trial,” he said Tesla would appeal. The lawsuit stemmed from a 2019 crash in the Florida Keys in which the driver of a Tesla Model S in Autopilot mode allegedly came to a T-intersection and, failing to see that the roadway was ending, kept his foot on the accelerator; the car slammed into a parked vehicle and two people standing nearby. One of the pedestrians, 22-year-old Naibel Benavides Leon, was killed; her boyfriend, 26-year-old Dillon Angulo, was seriously injured. Tesla’s lawyers argued that the Model S was not defective, and alleged that the driver of the Tesla was fishing for his cell phone at the time of the crash, and so was solely responsible. Tesla’s Autopilot feature has been blamed in dozens of crashes, but this is the first time the company has been found liable for an Autopilot-related crash. Read the full story: [https://www.wired.com/story/tesla-liable-2019-autopilot-crash-death/](https://www.wired.com/story/tesla-liable-2019-autopilot-crash-death/)

Certainly won’t be the last people splattered by “FSD” (lol) Teslas.

In Austin, if it rains, the robotaxis stop and drop you off wherever, even though there is a safety operator (human) in the front seat. They've even dropped off people in the middle of intersections on clear days. This alone is somewhere between the driving capabilities of 'intoxicated uncle' or 'meth addicted NY cabbie needing their next fix'.

FSD (deadly)

It's not just the fad that's the problem. I've had the lane keep assist acting like a frantic child at many times even on a clear sunny day.

Source?

Partially

this was actually A/P so if anything strengthens the FSD thesis. The settlement is 10c/share so neither here nor there anyway.

AcTuAlLy

“…kept his foot on the accelerator” I’m assuming they meant that AP kept the accelerator depressed?

I wonder what tactics Tesla will use and has probably already used to hide crashes and deaths from their “robotaxis” that really have to have a nanny operator.

Partly? They advertise features that aren't real and make you sign things to protect themselves from the lies you bought.