Texas Tesla crash leads to manslaughter charge

A Texas man, Michael David Butler, 44, has been charged with manslaughter after his Tesla Model 3, allegedly in Full Self-Driving mode, crashed into Martha Avila’s Katy home, killing a 76-year-old grandmother. Butler told investigators he was delivering with DoorDash, had the music on, and later passed out; the car reached 73 mph with no brake applied. Tesla disputes his account, noting Autopilot requires driver attentiveness, while the NHTSA is investigating; bail was set at $150,000 with an ankle monitor, and Avila’s family has filed a wrongful-death suit against Tesla alleging defective self-driving systems.