Drunk+ tesla full auto = Dead

[TriGuy]

plus one toasted 1.4 million dollar ladder Truck. Luckily the 4 fire fighters in the truck were fully belted in. Tesla Driver dead, passenger critical

[UTAH]

The Firefighters were proceeding down the road safely. Their readiness and obvious preparations (e.g., safety belts, proper attire, and due diligence) paid off. Doing those things saved their lives.

Having said the above, I can attest that one does not necessarily fully recover - physically or emotionally, from such an incident. We carry our past with us, as humans tend to do. May the Firefighters and the surviving passenger recover and go on with their lives. And, may their families and friends find a way to do the same.

Hunter

[TriGuy]

The truck crew was doing what we call a fend off. They were using their rig to diagonally block the left lanes so that the engine crew working the crash in front of them would be safe from idiots like the Tesla driver. I was responding to a crash scene on Hwy 9 to be a fend off unit in Rescue 2961 for engine 1762 when the radio crackled " Emergency traffic" I knew it was the voice of 1762's captain. Dispatch responded with "unit with emergency traffic go ahead" the response was chilling "1762 we have just been hit by a vehicle dispatch additional code 3 ambulances" Dead air followed. My stomach knotted up and I started to slowly speed up. My captain just said keep her steady just get us there in one piece. Dispatch came back up "Is the ambulance for firefighters? " " Negative for the driver that hit us" talk about relief that it wasn't one of our coworkers.

Probably what went went through the engine crews minds when they heard the truck get hit.

[wacojoe]

Can you give us a bit more to fill out the title of the thread? Tesla has three levels of autopilot. Any info on what level was employed and how that was verified? Was driver drunk?

[Independent Voter]

I hate to piggy back on this thread. Accidents are horrible . I do however have a question.


At what point will a court have to render a verdict in a drunk driving case when the lawyer for the person being accused uses the ; Your Honor , my client WAS NOT in fact driving the vehicle . The auto pilot was on and the fault lies with the manufacturer .

[Mike]

....At what point will a court have to render a verdict in a drunk driving case when the lawyer for the person being accused uses the ; Your Honor , my client WAS NOT in fact driving the vehicle . The auto pilot was on and the fault lies with the manufacturer .

A good question that I believe is already covered by most state's DWI/DUI laws. Most states only require that a person be in "actual physical control" of the vehicle to be charged. That does not mean actually driving the vehicle, only in control of it. An example could be sitting in your vehicle in a parking lot with the motor running so that you could use the air conditioner to stay cool while you sobered up enough to drive legally. You are in a vehicle, the keys are in the ignition, you are drunk and in control of the vehicle. That's all it takes in most states. That is something I have always disagreed with because a person who is smart enough not to drive and wait to sober up should not be penalized in my opinion.