Tesla ordered to pay $329M in fatal Autopilot crash case: Reports

Jurors awards $129 million in compensatory, $200 million in punitive damages, finding Tesla partially liable, CNBC News reports

By Iclal Turan

WASHINGTON (AA) - A jury in Miami has ordered Tesla to pay $329 million in damages over a fatal 2019 crash involving its Autopilot system, according to reports Friday.

The case centered around a deadly clash in Key Largo, Florida, where a Tesla Model S using Enhanced Autopilot struck two pedestrians, killing 22-year-old Naibel Benavides and severely injuring her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo.

Jurors awarded $129 million in compensatory and $200 million in punitive damages, finding Tesla partially liable, CNBC News reported.

The driver, George McGee, testified he believed the Autopilot system would stop the car as he reached for his dropped phone, it added.

“Tesla’s lies turned our roads into test tracks,” plaintiffs’ lawyer Brett Schreiber was quoted as saying.

Tesla did not immediately comment. The company’s shares fell 1.5% Friday.

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