A federal judge in Miami denied Tesla’s bid to toss out a $243 million verdict in a lawsuit that requires the automaker to compensate the family of a 2019 fatal Autopilot crash victim and a survivor. The collision, which occurred in Key Largo, Florida, killed 22-year-old Naibel Benavides and severely injured her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo. Tesla owner George McGee was driving his Model S sedan while using the company’s Enhanced Autopilot, a partially automated driving system. During the trial, McGee said that when he dropped his phone while driving and scrambled to pick it up, he thought the system would brake if an obstacle was in the way. McGee’s car instead accelerated through an intersection at just over 60 mph, hitting a nearby empty parked car as well as Angulo and Benavides, who were standing on the other side of their vehicle.
A jury determined last year that Tesla should be held partially responsible for the fatal crash. Tesla filed an appeal, seeking a new trial or to have the verdict tossed. U.S. District Court Judge Beth Bloom wrote that “evidence admitted at trial more than supports the jury verdict.”
Source: CNBC
