On Friday, a California state court jury handed Tesla a landslide victory by finding that the automaker’s Autopilot feature worked safely in what appears to be the first accident-related trial involving the software. partially automated driving.
The verdict could be a major victory for Tesla as it tests and launches its Autopilot and most advanced «Full Self-Driving (FSD)» system, which CEO Elon Musk has touted as crucial to the future of his company. but which has attracted regulations. and legal control.
Los Angeles resident Justine Hsu sued the electric vehicle maker in 2020, saying her Tesla Model S veered onto a curb while on autopilot and then an airbag deployed “so violently it fractured plaintiff’s jaw.” , knocked out his teeth, and caused nerve damage to his face.”
She claimed there were design flaws in the autopilot and airbag, and sought more than $3 million in damages for the alleged flaws and other claims.
Tesla denied responsibility for the 2019 accident. It said in a court filing that Hsu used Autopilot on city streets, despite Tesla’s owner’s manual warning against it.
During a court hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday, the jury awarded Hsu zero damages. He also discovered that the airbag did not fail to function safely and that Tesla did not intentionally fail to disclose the facts to him.
Hsu broke down in tears outside the courtroom after the jury returned their verdict.
One of Hsu’s lawyers, Donald Slavik, said they are disappointed with the outcome and appreciate the jury service. Tesla’s attorney, Michael Carey, declined to comment.
Tesla calls its driver assistance systems Autopilot, or Full Self-Driving, but says the features don’t make cars autonomous and human drivers must be «ready to take control at any moment.»
The electric vehicle maker filed its Autopilot in 2015, and the first fatal accident in the United States was reported in 2016, but the case never went to trial.
Critical moment for Tesla
Hsu’s trial, which has not been reported by other media, has been held in Los Angeles Superior Court for the past three weeks and featured testimony from three Tesla engineers.
It came at a critical time for the company as it prepares for a series of other tests starting this year related to the semi-automated driving system, which Musk has claimed is safer than human drivers.
While the trial outcome is not legally binding in other cases, it is considered a test case because it would serve as an indicator to help Tesla’s lawyers and other plaintiffs refine their strategies, experts say.
Cassandra Burke Robertson, a professor at Case Western Reserve University School of Law who has studied the liability of self-driving cars, said the early cases «give an indication of how later cases are likely to play out.»
Tesla is also being investigated for the US Department of Justice and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for their claims about the autonomous driving capabilities and safety of the technology, respectively.
The main question in the autopilot cases was who is responsible for an accident while a car was in driver assistant autopilot mode: a human driver, the machine, or both? Hsu’s lawsuit alleged that the Tesla hit the sidewalk so suddenly that she did not have time to avoid it even though she had her hands on the wheel and was alert.
Reuters was the first to report that a 2016 video used by Tesla to promote its self-driving technology was actually staged to show capabilities, such as stopping at a red light and accelerating at a green light, that the system did not have, according to testimony from a senior engineer.
The details about the video were from a statement from a Tesla executive in another case.
That executive, Ashok Elluswamy, director of Tesla’s Autopilot software, testified during Hsu’s trial last week over the videotape.