A Harris County arrest affidavit shows that Michael David Butler, 44, has been charged with manslaughter after his Tesla Model 3 collided with a home in the Katy area of suburban Houston on June 19, killing 76-year-old Martha Avila. Butler told responding paramedics that "the car was on 'Autopilot,'" according to court papers, and Avila later died at a nearby hospital.
In the affidavit, Butler said he was performing a DoorDash delivery and had changed the music on the Tesla's touchscreen before he "passed out." The document states that the car's speed reached 73 miles per hour - more than double the posted limit for that area - and that the brake pedal was not used in the minute preceding the crash. Butler denied feeling ill, and the affidavit reports that tests found no alcohol or common street drugs in his system.
Authorities set bail at $150,000 when Butler appeared in probable cause court, according to KHOU, and imposed conditions including an ankle monitor and a prohibition on driving.
Tesla has publicly disputed Butler's account. Chief Executive Elon Musk said a vehicle in Full Self-Driving mode "drives slowly through neighborhood streets," and a Tesla software vice president said Butler manually overrode the system by pressing the accelerator to the floor. Those comments contrast with Butler's statement that the car was in an automated mode at the time of impact.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened an investigation into the crash. The agency's probe is part of a broader review: since 2016, the NHTSA has opened nearly 50 special investigations of Tesla crashes believed to involve advanced driver assistance systems, and about two dozen deaths have been reported in those cases, according to the agency's records cited in court materials.
Tesla describes its Autopilot system as capable of steering, accelerating and braking within lane boundaries, while Full Self-Driving is said to allow vehicles to obey traffic signals and change lanes. The company has stated that both systems require a "fully attentive" driver to remain engaged.
Separately, Avila's family filed a wrongful death lawsuit last week alleging gross negligence by Tesla and asserting that the company failed to warn that its self-driving systems were defective. The family's civil action seeks to hold the electric vehicle maker accountable for the fatal collision.
Legal and regulatory status
- Criminal charge: Butler faces manslaughter charges following the June 19 collision.
- Civil litigation: Martha Avila's family has sued Tesla for wrongful death, alleging gross negligence and failure to warn.
- Federal investigation: The NHTSA has opened a probe, part of a series of nearly 50 special investigations into incidents involving Tesla advanced driver assistance systems since 2016.
What remains unclear from public records
- Exact sequence of driver inputs and system responses in the final minute before the crash beyond the details reported in the affidavit and Tesla's public statements.
- Whether further toxicology, vehicle data logs or independent analyses will alter the public record already established in court documents and company comments.