Saturday 21 May 2022 02:22 AM California Tesla driver, 27, must stand trial for 2019 autopilot crash, judge ... trends now
The driver of a Tesla operating on Autopilot must stand trial for a crash that killed two people in a Los Angeles suburb, a judge ruled Thursday.
There is enough evidence to try Kevin George Aziz Riad, 27, on two counts of vehicular manslaughter in the 2019 crash in Gardena, a Los Angeles County judge said.
It is believed to be the first felony prosecution in the U.S. against a driver who was using using a partially automated driving system.
Police said the Tesla Model S left a freeway and ran a red light in Gardena and was doing 74 mph when it smashed into a Honda Civic at an intersection on December 29, 2019.
The crash killed Gilberto Alcazar Lopez, 40, of Rancho Dominguez and Maria Guadalupe Nieves-Lopez, 39, of Lynwood, who were in the Civic and were on their first date that night, relatives told the Orange County Register.
Kevin George Aziz Riad, 27, will stand tria on two counts of vehicular manslaughter in the 2019 crash (above) in Gardena, a Los Angeles County judge said Thursday
Maria Guadalupe Nieves-Lopez, 39, died after she was hit by a speeding Tesla on Autopilot near a freeway exit in Los Angeles in 2019
Riad and a woman riding in the Tesla were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, according to KTTV.
Prosecutors said the Tesla's Autosteer and Traffic Aware Cruise Control were active.
A Tesla engineer testified that sensors indicated Riad had a hand on the steering wheel but crash data showed no brakes were applied in the six minutes before the crash.
A police officer testified Thursday that several traffic signs warning motorists to slow down were posted near the end of the freeway.
Tesla has said that Autopilot and a more sophisticated "Full Self-Driving" system cannot drive themselves and that drivers must pay attention and be ready to react at anytime.
The misuse of Autopilot, which can control steering, speed and braking, has occurred on numerous occasions and is the subject of investigations by two federal agencies.
Police said the Tesla Model S left a freeway and ran a red light in Gardena and was doing 74 mph when it smashed into a Honda Civic at an intersection on December 29, 2019
A Tesla engineer testified that sensors indicated Riad had a hand on the steering wheel but crash data showed no brakes were applied
The charges against Riad come after Tesla was removed from the S&P 500 ESG Index in part due to the company's handling of Autopilot crashes.
Maria Guadalupe Nieves-Lopez was on a first date when she was killed in the crash
S&P Dow Jones Indices, which maintains the sustainability index, cited investigations into crashes and Tesla's response in removing the company from the list.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk slammed the move as 'wacktivism,' claiming that the index 'has been weaponized by phony social justice warriors.'
The filing of charges in the California crash could serve notice to drivers who use systems like Autopilot that they
