SACRAMENTO, the United States, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- A Miami jury on Friday found Tesla's Autopilot system liable in a deadly 2019 crash. This first-of-its-kind ruling highlighted mounting safety worries about self-driving tech and could unleash a surge of similar lawsuits against automakers globally.
Court documents showed Tesla owed 242.6 million U.S. dollars in damages: 42.6 million dollars for victims' pain and suffering, and 200 million dollars as punitive damages.
The tragedy unfolded in Florida when George McGee's Tesla struck a car, killing 22-year-old Naibel Benavides Leon and severely injuring her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo. McGee confessed to cellphone distraction, yet jurors found Tesla 33 percent at fault. They deemed Autopilot defective for permitting use on unfit roads without sufficient safeguards or alerts.
Tesla said in a statement, "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 life-saving technology."
Tesla said it will appeal.
Since launching Autopilot in 2015, Tesla has faced growing scrutiny over the driving feature. U.S. regulators have investigated multiple crashes, including a probe opened by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in October 2024 into Tesla's Full Self-Driving system after four crashes in low-visibility conditions, including one pedestrian fatality, according to agency documents.
In another inquiry in April 2024, the administration analyzed 467 Autopilot crashes with 54 injuries, leading to a recall of over 2 million vehicles for enhanced driver alerts, per agency records. In January 2025, it launched a probe into 2.6 million Tesla cars over remote driving features after four reported crashes.
Meanwhile, the California Department of Motor Vehicles recently accused Tesla of misleading advertising by using terms like "Autopilot" and "Full Self-Driving." It is seeking to suspend Tesla's license to sell vehicles in the state, its biggest U.S. market, for at least 30 days and may also push for consumer warnings and restitution.
According to local media, legal analysts viewed Friday's verdict as a watershed, marking the first major jury verdict against Tesla for a third-party death. ■