The family of a 15-year-old boy killed in a car accident in 2019 is suing TeslaSaid the company's Autopilot system played a key role in the accident.
In August 2019, the boy, Jovani Maldonado Maldonado, and his father were hit by a Tesla while driving, according to the indictment. Giovanni was thrown out of the car without wearing a seat belt.
Accident data show that the Tesla enabled the Autopilot function when he crashed into the Maldonado and son's car. The data also show that the Tesla briefly accelerated before braking a few seconds before the crash.
Tesla's Autopilot software does not make the car fully self-driving. According to Tesla's instructions, the driver should maintain control of the vehicle and put his hands on the steering wheel.
But Maldonado's family said in the indictment that Tesla's marketing of the Autopilot function encouraged abuse and that the software was flawed and could not respond to traffic conditions. The lawsuit also listed Tesla's driver as the defendant.
Tesla's lawyer challenged the company's claim that it "drove" the vehicle through its software before the accident and said the facts did not support legal action against the company on this basis. A lawyer for the company said: "the police have blamed the driver Tesla, not the car, because of his inattention and unsafe driving speed."