California prosecutors have filed two counts of vehicular manslaughter against the driver of a Tesla on Autopilot who ran a red light, slammed into another car and killed two people in 2019.
The defendant appears to be the first person to be charged with a felony in the United States for a fatal crash involving a motorist who was using a partially automated driving system. Los Angeles County prosecutors filed the charges in October, but they came to light only last week.
The criminal charges aren’t the first involving an automated driving system, but they are the first to involve a widely used driver technology. Authorities in Arizona filed a charge of negligent homicide in 2020 against a driver Uber had hired to take part in the testing of a fully autonomous vehicle on public roads. The Uber vehicle, an SUV with the human backup driver on board, struck and killed a pedestrian.
Criminal charging documents do not mention Autopilot. But the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which sent investigators to the crash, confirmed last week that Autopilot was in use in the Tesla at the time of the crash. Last May, a California man was arrested after officers noticed his Tesla moving down a freeway with the man in the back seat and no one behind the steering wheel.or tractor-trailers that were crossing roads. NHTSA has sent investigation teams to 26 crashes involving Autopilot since 2016, involving at least 11 deaths.
Bryant Walker Smith, a law professor at the University of South Carolina who studies automated vehicles, said this is the first U.S. case to his knowledge in which serious criminal charges were filed in a fatal crash involving a partially automated driver-assist system. Tesla, he said, could be "criminally, civilly or morally culpable" if it is found to have put a dangerous technology on the road.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
In 1st, felony charges filed in a fatal crash involving AutopilotCalifornia prosecutors have filed two counts of vehicular manslaughter against the driver of a Tesla on Autopilot who ran a red light, slammed into another car and killed two people in 2019.
Read more »
Manslaughter Charges Filed Against Driver Of Autopiloted Tesla Which Killed 2 In GardenaL.A. County prosecutors have filed manslaughter charges against the driver of a Tesla on autopilot who killed 2 people in a crash in Gardena in 2019. It's believed to be the first such charges in the nation.
Read more »
Tesla owner is the first to face felony charges for deadly Autopilot crashThe first criminal case involving the driver assist system.
Read more »
Authorities Investigating After Pedestrian Struck, Killed In WinnetkaLos Angeles Police Department officers were on the scene of a fatal crash involving a pedestrian that occurred in Winnetka on Monday evening, at around 6:20 p.m.
Read more »
Vic Mensa arrested after officials allegedly find drugs in his bag at D.C. airportThe rapper was charged with felony narcotics possession.
Read more »
Grand Prairie Police Investigating Fatal Pedestrian Hit and RunGrand Prairie police are investigating a fatal traffic collision involving a pedestrian that occurred on Friday.
Read more »