Texas Tesla Crash Driver Charged with Manslaughter After Fatal House Collision; Previously Called FSD "Too Conservative" in Searches

On June 19, 2024, 44-year-old Michael Butler crashed his Tesla Model 3 into a residential home in Katy, Texas, killing 76-year-old Martha Avila. At the time of the incident, Butler claimed the vehicle was operating with Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system engaged and stated that he had lost consciousness after switching music and checking the navigation screen while delivering for DoorDash. He told emergency responders and hospital staff that the car was in “autopilot” mode, though toxicology tests at the hospital detected no alcohol or drugs in his system. Police investigators discovered multiple Google search entries on Butler’s phone dated May 2026—including phrases like “2026 Tesla FSD not aggressive enough,” “FSD not aggressive enough on city roads,” and “Tesla FSD too conservative.” Some of these searches contained spelling errors and were repeated multiple times. According to video footage from the vehicle and data from its “black box,” investigators determined that approximately six seconds before impact, Butler pressed the accelerator pedal to 100%, accelerating the car to 117 km/h—far exceeding the residential area’s speed limit—and never applied the brake pedal throughout the incident. Ashok Elluswamy, head of Tesla AI, stated that the driver had manually overridden the Autopilot system at the time. On July 3, 2024, Butler was arrested on suspicion of manslaughter. Avila’s family has filed a lawsuit against both Butler and Tesla, seeking to hold them liable for wrongful death. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) have launched investigations into the crash.