Texas Man Charged with Manslaughter After Fatal Tesla Crash

A man from Texas has been charged with manslaughter following the tragic death of a 76-year-old grandmother, who lost her life when her Tesla crashed into a house last month.

Michael David Butler, 44, allegedly claimed to authorities that he was driving a Tesla Model 3 equipped with driver assistance features when he crashed into Martha Avila’s home in Katy on June 19. According to court documents, he later told paramedics that the car was on “autopilot,” a point Tesla has since contested.

At the time of the crash, Avila was inside her home and was later transported to a local hospital via Life Flight, where she was pronounced dead.

Butler was arrested on Thursday and officially charged with manslaughter by the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.

In his account, Butler stated he was making a DoorDash delivery and had momentarily adjusted the music on the car’s touchscreen before “passing out.” An arrest affidavit mentioned that his vehicle accelerated to 113 mph—more than double the posted speed limit—and he hadn’t pressed the brakes moments before the impact.

Investigators revealed that Butler had been unable to keep his vehicle in its lane; he veered off the road and crashed into the house. Footage captured by the doorbell camera recorded the car striking the home at high speed.

Remarkably, Butler denied feeling unwell or under the influence of any substances prior to the accident.

Moreover, Tesla has rejected Butler’s explanation. CEO Elon Musk maintained that a vehicle running in fully autonomous mode would not speed through residential areas. In fact, Ashok Elswamy, Tesla’s head of AI, indicated that Butler had overridden the system by completely pressing the accelerator. “In this case, the driver depressed the gas pedal to 100% in this residential area and manually disabled autonomous driving,” Tesla stated in a post.

Butler appeared in court on Thursday, where his bail was set at $150,000. He has been ordered to wear an ankle monitor and prohibited from driving.

In the wake of Avila’s death, her family has filed a lawsuit against Tesla, asserting that the company’s negligence contributed to the tragedy, claiming they failed to adequately inform consumers about flaws in their self-driving technology.