The driver of a Tesla operating on autopilot must stand trial for a crash that killed two people in Gardena, a judge ruled Thursday.
Highlights
- There is enough evidence to try Kevin George Aziz Riad, 27, on two counts of vehicular manslaughter.
- It is believed to be the first felony prosecution in the U.S.
- against a driver using a partially automated driving system.
- 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.
- The filing of charges in the California crash could serve notice to drivers that they cannot rely on systems like autopilot to control vehicles.
- Tesla has said that Autobilot and a more sophisticated “Full Self-Driving” system cannot drive themselves.