— Tesla Model S owner Giovanni Mendoza Martinez was killed February 18, 2023, when his car crashed into a California firetruck which was parked across the highway to block traffic due to a previous crash.
Now the family of Martinez has filed a lawsuit against Tesla which blames its driver-assistance system Autopilot for the fatal crash.
According to the lawsuit, Genesis Giovanni Mendoza Martinez, 31, purchased the used Model S in March 2021.
"When Giovanni purchased the Tesla Model S, he understood that the vehicle would drive itself and he no longer needed to drive it." — Tesla lawsuit
Giovanni Martinez was driving the Tesla Model S at about 3:54 a.m. with his brother in the passenger seat. The car had Autopilot engaged as the Model S traveled in the number two lane of northbound Interstate 680.
But parked diagonally across two lanes was a ladder firetruck to block traffic due to an earlier unrelated crash.
"Slow down and move over when approaching emergency vehicles. Truck 1 was struck by a Tesla while blocking I-680 lanes from a previous accident. Driver pronounced dead on-scene; passenger was extricated & transported to hospital. Four firefighters also transported for evaluation." — Contra Costa County Fire Department, February 18, 2023
Even though there were two firetrucks and two California Highway Patrol vehicles on the scene with their emergency lights flashing, the Tesla Model S crashed head-on into the side of the firetruck.
According to the lawsuit:
"At the time of the collision, Giovanni was not controlling the Subject Vehicle, but he was instead passively sitting in the driver's seat with the 'Autopilot' feature engaged."
However, the lawsuit doesn't allege why the driver didn't see the firetruck blocking the road, nor the other emergency vehicles with flashing lights.
The plaintiffs say data from the car show the Tesla was traveling about 71 mph with Autopilot engaged for about 12 minutes when the crash occurred.
The lawsuit alleges "Giovanni generally maintained contact with the steering wheel until the time of the crash."
His family says Giovanni trusted the Autopilot feature to "drive the vehicle autonomously on the freeway regularly."
The family further asserts Martinez fully believed the vehicle was a safer driver than a human, and he relied on Autopilot to perceive and react to traffic in front of him.
Tesla's Answer
Tesla wasted no time in responding to the Giovanni Mendoza Martinez lawsuit, telling the court it wasn't the automaker which "caused or contributed to the alleged loss/damages."
"Tesla is informed and believes, and on that basis alleges that the loss alleged resulted from the abuse, misuse, or alteration of the product in question which was not reasonably foreseeable to Tesla."
According to court documents, Tesla provided the information and warnings with the Model S. with the owner's manual clearly warning drivers to keep their hands on the steering wheel and stay aware of their surroundings.
A driver is also provided warnings when activating Autopilot, and a driver is repeatedly warned if their hands are off the steering wheel for a certain period.
"Tesla alleges that no additional warnings would have, or could have prevented the alleged incident, the injuries, losses and damages alleged by Plaintiffs. The law imposes no legal duty to warn of obvious risks and Tesla is not liable to Plaintiffs for any injuries or damages claimed in this action." — Tesla
The Giovanni Mendoza Martinez lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California: Mendoza, et al., v. Tesla, Inc.
The plaintiffs are represented by Singleton Schreiber, LLP.
