— A Florida Tesla Autopilot trial led to a jury verdict against Tesla for $329 million in the death of 22-year-old Naibel Benavides Leon and injuries to her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo.
The crash occurred in a Tesla Model S driven by George McGee who admitted he ignored his surroundings and was picking up a dropped cell phone. You can read what McGee told a 911 operator here.
McGee was not part of the Florida Tesla Autopilot trial because he had already settled a lawsuit in the death of Naibel Benavides Leon.
You can read about the jury verdict here, a verdict Tesla argues did not match the evidence of the Model S crash.
Tesla Wants a New Florida Autopilot Trial
Tesla told the judge a new trial should be ordered or the judgment should be altered because the Model S allegedly did not cause the fatal crash.
Tesla admits the Florida crash was a "tragedy," but one allegedly caused entirely by driver McGee who was "reckless in the extreme by ignoring or overriding every safety feature in his car."
The automaker says there was no vehicle anywhere in the world in 2019 that could have prevented the "tragic consequences of George McGee’s extraordinary recklessness." Tesla further alleges the driver was speeding in the dark while talking on his phone and pressed the accelerator pedal to override the cruise control.
"No other car in existence would have stopped when the driver was telling it to 'go.'” — Tesla
The $329 million judgment against Tesla allegedly flies in the face of common sense because automakers "do not insure the world against harms caused by reckless drivers."
"For as long as there have been cars, there have been reckless, self-absorbed drivers like McGee. Those drivers should face every legal consequence for their wrongful conduct." — Tesla
Tesla told the judge the Model S "employed state-of-the-art safety technology to assist drivers" and met or exceeded all safety standards.
Tesla also argues experts for the plaintiffs blamed Tesla for "not designing the 2019 Model S to brake automatically for off-road, out-of-lane objects when no car in the world at the time could have done so...."
According to Tesla, Mr. McGee didn't read and didn't follow Tesla's "clear, plain, repeated" warnings about the capabilities and limitations of the Model S.
Tesla argues the crash was completely caused by driver McGee when he ignored the road, then dropped and reached down for his cell phone. Tesla claims he "blew past a stop-sign intersection with his hands on the wheel and his foot on the accelerator—overriding Tesla’s safety features."
"For as long as drivers remain at the wheel, any safety feature may embolden a few reckless drivers while enhancing safety for countless others. Holding Tesla liable for providing drivers with advanced safety features just because a reckless driver overrode them cannot be reconciled with Florida law. That rule would impede the development of safety features, deter progress, and cost lives both now and in the long run." — Tesla
The case is Neima Benavides, as Personal Representative of the Estate of Naibel Benavides Leon, deceased, v. Tesla, Inc., a/k/a. Tesla Florida, Inc.