After more than 2 years, a Tesla driver who had an accident in California is now officially charged with two counts of manslaughter. After the accident, an investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) showed that Tesla Autopilot (autonomous assisted driving) had been activated at the time, but this does not mean that the vehicle can fully autonomously drive itself.
On December 29, 2019, a Tesla Model S ran a red light at a red light at an intersection in the suburbs of Los Angeles after leaving the highway and hit a Honda Civic, resulting in the death of two people in the Civic, and the occupants of the Tesla car were injured but not life-threatening.
The Model S was piloted by Kevin George Aziz Riad, 27, who was charged two counts of manslaughter by Los Angeles County prosecutors last October. However, Riad pleaded not guilty and was released on bail while the case was still pending.
The incident occurred at the crossroads
The case is groundbreaking because Riad will be the first person in the United States to be charged with a felony for using "non-fully autonomous driving technology."
The Los Angeles County prosecutor's documents and allegations did not mention Autopilot. But NHTSA investigators have confirmed to Tesla that the vehicle was using Tesla's auto-assisted driving Autopilot at the time of the accident.
In this regard, NHTSA believes that although the car opens Autopilot, it does not mean that the vehicle can drive autonomously, and the driver is still the main body that fulfills the responsibility of vehicle driving and ensures safety.
NHTSA reminds the public that no commercial vehicle can achieve autonomous driving at this stage. Whether or not L2 level autonomous driving systems are enabled, each vehicle requires a human driver to be in control at all times, and all state laws require drivers to be responsible for the operation of their vehicles. Some advanced driver assistance devices can help drivers avoid collisions and reduce the severity of collisions, thereby improving safety, but only if the driver uses them correctly and responsibly.
While Tesla's Autopilot is an advanced driver assistance system, it still requires the driver to stay focused and ready to take over. Tesla's "Frequently Asked Questions" about Autopilot on its official website states:
Autopilot is a manual driver assistance system that is only available to the attentive driver. The feature won't turn Tesla into a self-driving car. Before enabling Autopilot, the driver must agree to always keep his hands on the steering wheel and always maintain control and responsibility for the car.
From another perspective, the FSD beta version (fully autonomous driving beta) that Tesla is currently testing was first launched in October 2020, which can achieve assisted driving in the city, unprotected left turn, recognize and respond to traffic lights, and give way to pedestrians, while before that, FSD can only achieve basic functions such as high-speed assisted driving.
This also means that at the time of the 2019 incident, the Tesla Model S did not have the ability to assist driving in the city at all, and the vehicle could not recognize and respond to traffic lights at the intersection. From this point of view, the driver should be the ultimate responsible person for this accident.