Jury Awards 242 Million In Tesla Autopilot Related Crash

By Long Island Attorney Paul A. Lauto, Esq.

A federal jury in Miami has awarded 242 million dollars in a 2019 Tesla Model S auto pilot related crash in the Florida Keys near Key Largo. The accident occurred when driver George McGee was said to have been driving 62 mph in a 45 mph speed zone and took his hands off the wheel and eyes off the road to look for his dropped cell phone. McGee is further said to have ignored and passed a stop sign and flashing red light at a T- intersection, when he struck a parked vehicle and the two pedestrians beside it. As a result, one person died and the other was said to have sustained catastrophic injuries.

Plaintiffs' attorney argued that Tesla was liable because it misled consumers by promoting Autopilot as if it could perform autonomously and failed to prevent distracted drivers from relying on the system. Tesla's attorneys argued that the company had explicit warnings that drivers must keep both hands on the wheel and both eyes on the road at all times, in that their (2019) technology was in fact not autonomous, but rather was a driver assistance program. Further, that the liability rested entirely with McGee, who ignored all these warnings in addition to driving in a reckless and careless manner.

The jury found McGee to be 67% at fault and Tesla to be 33% at fault. In that McGee wasn't even named as a defendant in the case, Tesla was held responsible to pay 200 million in punitive damages and 42.6 million in compensatory damages. It appears that a truly objective application of the law would determine that it was 100% McGee's negligence that was the direct and proximate cause of the accident. Needless to say, Tesla is contesting the decision and is confident they will win on appeal.

Long Island Lawyer

Paul A. Lauto, Esq.

www.liattorney.com