Elon Musk Wept With the Father of the Crash Victim. Tesla now challenges him in court.
Boy is identified by the company's defence as a frequent speeder. Florida Model S crash at high speed sparked a battery fire
Wednesday, July 6, 2022 | Chimniii Desk
Elon Musk recounted the pain of losing his infant boy in his arms in 2018 while comforting a parent who had lost his teen to a catastrophic Tesla Model S disaster.
Now, as the most expensive automaker in the world squares off in court against a family that was formerly known to staff members as "VIP customers," Tesla Inc. is attempting to disprove James Riley's assertion that it was responsible for his son's death.
The first jury trial involving a deadly accident using one of the company's electric cars is scheduled to start on Wednesday in federal court in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Unlike other lawsuits that blame the automaker's Autopilot driver-assistance feature for fatal collisions, this case does not make any claims that Tesla's technology was flawed, and the outcome of the trial is unlikely to harm the company's reputation, according to Michael Brooks, acting executive director of the Center for Auto Safety, a consumer advocacy group.
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The battle, however, serves as a reminder of the company's "aggressive legal approach" of going to court rather than resolving disagreements, he claimed.
It clarifies a lot about what's happening in America and how much power customers actually own, according to Brooks.
An inquiry for comment from Tesla received no response.
Barrett Riley lost control of his car in May 2018 while travelling at 116 mph (187 kph) on a Fort Lauderdale street, crashing into a concrete wall of a house. Both he and his 18-year-old pal in the passenger seat died when the automobile caught fire. A passenger in the back seat who was thrown from the vehicle survived.
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(Front of the vehicle displaying considerable internal fire damage and serious impact damage. Information from the National Transportation Safety Board)
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James Riley's attorneys will contend that Tesla was at fault for taking away a speed-limiting device two months after his wife had requested that it be installed for Barrett's safety. The business is prepared to refute the claim that Barrett "tricked" its workers into deleting the limiter, which was intended to prevent the automobile from travelling faster than 85 mph, while the vehicle was being repaired.
Soon after the incident, Musk contacted James Riley. The millionaire shown sympathy for the family in an email interaction between them that was included in court documents, acknowledging the pain caused by the loss of his own child.
In June 2018, Tesla released a software update for its speed restriction feature that would allow users to set a maximum speed between 50 mph and 90 mph. The owner's manual stated that the feature had been updated in Barrett Riley's honour.
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The Riley family sued Tesla two years later. They asserted that a flaw in the Model S battery was what caused it to explode in their initial complaint. According to them, Barrett was killed by the fire rather than the force of the collision, which is consistent with a medical examiner's report that was used as evidence in a National Transportation Safety Board investigation. After the firm questioned whether the evidence suggested a problem, the judge rejected that argument.
According to Brooks, lawsuits against manufacturers of electric vehicles frequently mention battery fire problems.
Since many battery fire instances arise, he stated, "I hope this ruling doesn't have an impact on those because I would like to see the claims addressed."
By demonstrating that Barrett had a risky history of speeding and arguing that his parents failed to place driving restrictions on him, Tesla will attempt to refute the negligence claim.
Due to the family's objections, Tesla decided not to present the jury other videos that friends of Barrett's had made capturing his speeding, including one with the caption "I'M GONNA DIE" and a speed of 155 mph.
Instead, the business will cite Barrett's speeding ticket for exceeding the posted 50 mph limit by 112 mph as well as a spreadsheet showing the Model S's top speeds before the collision.
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The Riley family, Barrett, his associates, and Tesla employees were all mentioned in testimony, messages, emails, and videos during the pretrial hearings, which provided a preview of some of the other material that would likely be revealed.
Barrett Riley's mother, Jenny Riley, requested a speed limiter after receiving a speeding ticket in March 2018. A service centre employee mentioned the Rileys as "VIP customers" who had their sixth Tesla vehicle on order in an email to coworkers. The family, who the representative referred to be "big Tesla advocates," believed that the limitation was an essential safety measure.
“Fabulous. After the installation was confirmed, Jenny Riley texted the representative the following day to say "thank you. With four exclamation points, she wrote, "This will save lives."
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