Jury Finds Elon Musk’s Tesla Partly at Fault in Autopilot Crash Lawsuit, Awards $200 Million in Dama

[mystery-ak]

Jury Finds Elon Musk’s Tesla Partly at Fault in Autopilot Crash Lawsuit, Awards $200 Million in Damages

Lucas Nolan 1 Aug 2025

A federal jury in Miami has found Elon Musk’s Tesla partly at fault in a federal lawsuit over a 2019 Autopilot crash in Florida that left a young woman dead and her boyfriend badly hurt. The jury awarded the plaintiffs $200 million in punitive damages along with compensatory damages.

CNBC reports that Elon Musk’s Tesla has been found partly at fault in a personal injury trial over a fatal Autopilot crash that occurred in Florida in 2019. The case, being heard in the Southern District of Florida, marks the first time Tesla has been in front of a jury in federal court over allegations related to the safety of its Autopilot system.

The plaintiffs’ attorneys had asked the jury to award damages of approximately $345 million, which includes $109 million in compensatory damages and $236 million in punitive damages. Based on the jury’s finding that Tesla held one-third of the blame for the accident, they award $200 million in punitive damages along with compensatory damages.

The lawsuit centers around a deadly crash that took place in Key Largo, Florida, involving a Tesla Model S electric sedan driven by George McGee. At the time of the incident, McGee was using Tesla’s Enhanced Autopilot, a partially automated driving system.

According to court testimony, McGee dropped his mobile phone while driving and attempted to retrieve it, believing that Enhanced Autopilot would brake if an obstacle was in the way. However, he accelerated through an intersection at just over 60 miles per hour, colliding with a nearby parked car and its owners, who were standing on the other side of their vehicle.

The crash resulted in the death of 22-year-old Naibel Benavides, who was found about 75 feet away from the point of impact. Her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo, survived but suffered multiple broken bones, a traumatic brain injury, and psychological effects. The plaintiffs in the case include Benavides’ surviving family members and Angulo, who are seeking compensation for medical expenses, pain and suffering, and wrongful death, as well as punitive damages.

more
https://www.breitbart.com/tech/2025/08/01/jury-finds-elon-musks-tesla-partly-at-fault-in-florida-autopilot-crash-lawsuit/

[Cyber Liberty]

That's a pretty bad failure of Autopilot, but what was the state of the art six years ago?  I imagine there were a lot of clauses in the End User Agreements at that time.  This is sure to be appealed.

[Smokin Joe]

What is it about phones that people will desperately grab for them to the detriment of their driving?
 If it is that damn important that you have it in your hand, whatever it is, find a place to pull over and pick it up.

[Fishrrman]

This will be appealed, of course.
And probably substantially reduced.

[Cyber Liberty]

This will be appealed, of course.
And probably substantially reduced.

Yup!

[MeganC]

This will be appealed, of course.
And probably substantially reduced.

Or overturned entirely on the basis that an auto manufacturer can't be held liable for the misuse of their product.

[Cyber Liberty]

Or overturned entirely on the basis that an auto manufacturer can't be held liable for the misuse of their product.

When the car in question was built, it was far from ready for autopilot use.  It wasn't even being road tested at that time.