A US judge has ruled that Tesla CEO Elon Musk and other managers were aware of a defect in the company’s Autopilot system but still allowed the cars to be driven in an unsafe manner. The ruling came from Judge Reid Scott in the Circuit Court for Palm Beach County, who stated that there was “reasonable evidence” to support the claim. The plaintiff in a product liability lawsuit against Tesla can now proceed to trial and seek punitive damages for intentional misconduct and gross negligence. This ruling is a setback for Tesla, which previously won two product liability trials in California this year related to the Autopilot system.
The lawsuit in question originated from a 2019 crash in Florida, where a Tesla Model 3 drove under a trailer and resulted in the death of the owner. The trial, originally scheduled for October, has been postponed and has yet to be rescheduled. Judge Scott determined that the plaintiff, the wife of the deceased owner, should be allowed to argue that Tesla’s warnings and agreements were inadequate.
Furthermore, the judge noted the similarities between this case and a 2016 fatal crash involving the Autopilot system. In that incident, the system failed to detect crossing trucks, leading to vehicles colliding with a tractor-trailer at high speeds. Judge Scott concluded that it would be reasonable to assume that Tesla, including its CEO and engineers, were well aware of the issue with the Autopilot system’s failure to detect cross traffic.
Tesla has not yet responded to the ruling.
