A Florida jury has ordered Tesla to pay $242 million in damages following a fatal 2019 crash involving its Autopilot system, marking one of the largest verdicts against the electric vehicle giant. The case centered on a collision in Key Largo where a Tesla Model 3, driven by George McGee, struck a Chevrolet SUV, killing passenger Naibel Benavides Leon and injuring her partner Dillon Angulo.
Plaintiffs argued that Tesla's driver assistance technology failed to prevent the crash despite marketing claims about its safety features. Jurors assigned one-third liability to Tesla, reducing the original $329 million compensatory award. Attorney Darren Jeffrey Rousso, representing the victims' families, called the verdict "fair and just," while Tesla's legal team vowed to appeal, calling the decision "a setback for automotive safety innovation."
Tesla maintained that driver error – including speeding and phone use – caused the collision, stating: "No car in 2019, and none today, would have prevented this crash." The outcome raises critical questions about liability frameworks for emerging vehicle technologies as regulators worldwide scrutinize autonomous driving systems.
