The Tesla driver involved in a 2019 autopilot-related crash that claimed the lives of two individuals in a Los Angeles suburb has been ordered to pay over $23,000 in restitution. This decision, coincidentally made on the same day Tesla issued a recall for nearly all U.S.-sold vehicles, marks the conclusion of a court hearing that stands out as the first instance in the U.S. where prosecutors pursued felony charges against a driver using a semi-automated driving system.
The court proceeding on Wednesday brought closure to a case that emerged from a series of fatal accidents investigated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, prompting the recent widespread recall affecting over 2 million Tesla vehicles. This recall addresses software issues and rectifies a faulty system designed to ensure driver attentiveness while utilizing Autopilot. The recall followed a two-year federal investigation into accidents occurring during the use of the partially automated driving system.
Kevin Aziz Riad, the Tesla driver in the Los Angeles incident, entered a no contest plea to two counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence. Despite facing a potential sentence of over seven years in prison, a judge opted for probation in June.
The accident occurred when Aziz Riad, a limousine service driver, was behind the wheel of a Tesla Model S traveling at 74 mph (119 kph). The vehicle, operating on Autopilot, left a freeway, ran a red light, and collided with a Honda Civic at an intersection on December 29, 2019. The occupants of the Honda, Gilberto Alcazar Lopez and Maria Guadalupe Nieves-Lopez, lost their lives in the collision. Their families have filed ongoing civil lawsuits against both Aziz Riad and Tesla.
While Aziz Riad's restitution was determined, Donald Slavik, representing Alcazar Lopez's family, expressed gratitude for any restitution but emphasized that it represents only a fraction of the damages suffered. Their lawsuit is scheduled for trial next year. Slavik noted that the recently announced recall, if restricting Autopilot use to controlled access highways, might have prevented the tragic incident.
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