Family sues Tesla after woman killed by vehicle allegedly in self-driving mode
Family sues Tesla after woman killed by vehicle allegedly in self-driving mode
Tesla's head of AI claimed that the self-driving mode was manually overridden.
ByIvan PereiraJune 24, 2026, 5:22 PMThe family of a woman who was killed when a Tesla crashed into her home while allegedly in self-driving mode is suing the automaker and the driver for damages.
Jennifer and Justin Barbour, the daughter and son-in-law of Martha Avila, the 76-year-old woman killed in last Friday's crash at her Katy, Texas, house, filed the wrongful death suit in Harris County District Court on Tuesday, alleging Tesla and the driver, Michael Buter, were negligent.
Butler was traveling in his Tesla Model 3 around 8 p.m. local time Friday and was allegedly operating the vehicle "with an automated driving assistance system," the Harris County Sheriff's office said in a statement.
He allegedly failed to drive in a single lane, left the roadway and struck the brick residence, according to the sheriff's office.
RelatedTesla allegedly in driver-assist mode crashes into Texas house, woman killed: InvestigatorsThe lawsuit and police said Avila was standing in her front room when the vehicle crashed into the home. She was airlifted to a hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.
Ryan Zehl, an attorney representing the Barbours, told ABC News on Wednesday that the vehicle was allegedly driving over 70 miles per hour during the crash.
"So what we have is a horrific and what we believe will be proven to show preventable crash amidst a rising number of autonomous vehicle crashes, particularly including Tesla. And in this particular situation, a 76-year-old grandmother who was tragically, preventively and needlessly killed while in her own residence," he said.
Justin Barbour was also in the house during the crash and suffered injuries, according to the lawsuit.
Attorney information for Butler was not immediately available. Tesla did not immediately respond to ABC News for comment on the suit.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk made a comment about the crash in an X post on Monday, in response to another X user who criticized a news article about the incident.
"Yes, this makes no sense. FSD drives slowly through neighborhood streets and this was a high speed crash!" he posted.
Ashok Elluswamy, Tesla's head of AI, responded to Musk's post on X, claiming the self-driving mode was manually overridden.
"Yup. In this case, the driver manually overrode self-driving by pressing the accelerator all the way to 100% of the accel pedal in this residential area. They reached a speed of 73 mph during the crash, and had the accelerator pressed even after the crash," he posted.
RelatedVideo Texas grandmother killed after Tesla crashes into homeZehl argued that those X posts may not tell the entire story, as there are still a lot of unknowns about the crash.
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"Social media is not the place to litigate this case," he said.
Zehl said that Tesla has a system called a collision snapshot that sends data to its servers during significant crashes.
"So they clearly have the data because they're talking about accelerator data. We would like to see it. We don't have it. We will request it," he said.
The crash is being investigated by local authorities, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the National Transportation Safety Board.
Zehl said the family has been living in a hotel since the crash, which left the house uninhabitable. He said the Barbours and their three children are devastated as they are preparing funeral arrangements for Avila.
The suit, which seeks over $1 million in damages, alleged that Tesla has repeatedly made claims that its self-driving features are safe. It said there have been at least 13 NHTSA investigations into Tesla's driver assistance systems since 2016.
"That is not something you typically see. If you have a unique, independent kind of isolated event, it would not justify a special investigation. Those only happen about 100 times a year," Zehl said.
RelatedVideo Tesla car allegedly in driver-assist mode crashes into home, killing woman insideNo charges have been issued as of Wednesday afternoon, and the investigations are ongoing.
Zehl said that he hopes that his clients can get more answers about this incident, and more is done to improve safety for autonomous vehicles.
"We need to understand, is this technology actually as safe as companies like Tesla claim it to be in their marketing materials? Because if it is, we should not see crash rates," he said.
-ABC News' Ali Ayesha contributed to this report.
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Badenoch blasts 'moaning' female Labour MPs over Burnham jobs 'quota'
Kemi Badenoch has told Labour women to earn a job in Andy Burnham's Cabinet instead of demanding they are handed jobs because of their gender.
The Tory leader lashed out today amid reports that female MPs are demanding the de-facto new prime minister introduce a 50:50 gender split 'quota' in his government.
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister also complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts.
But in a scathing article in the Times today Mrs Badenoch told them to 'stop moaning' and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'.
'There are many, many reasons why you shouldn't have any Milibands in the cabinet,' she said.
'But complaining that the boys haven't given them the right jobs or that the boys are taking all the jobs, just shows that Labour's women still don't get it.'
The idea of quotas was also attacked by Baroness Jacqui Smith, Labour's Skills Minister.
Asked by Times Radio if Mr Burnham should reserve jobs for women, she said: 'No, I think what Andy Burnham should be doing is building the very best team around him to change this country.'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband (above, right, in 2010) is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts
But Mrs Badenoch told them to pipe down and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party and seen by the BBC has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs after he succeeds Sir Keir Starmer.
'We are asking you to demonstrate this change from day one and address the toxicity and misogyny within our own party and government,' it said.
Labour has never had a female leader, while the Conservatives have had three, and Mrs Badenoch urged the government to follow its meritocratic example.
'If you run a meritocracy, then you do not have to worry about jobs for the boys,' she wrote.
'Every woman who is a Conservative MP, every woman who has ever won the leadership, has had to fight to get where she is.
'By contrast, Labour women are demanding guarantees from Burnham. But the truth is he doesn't have to give any guarantees.
'If none of Labour's women are prepared to get their hands dirty and challenge him for the leadership, their demands are toothless.'
'In fact, it's quite revealing that the women's parliamentary Labour Party has written to Burnham asking him to commit himself to at least 50 per cent female ministers.
'This has nothing to do with meritocracy. It is yet more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country.'
