A Texas man has been charged with manslaughter after police allege his Tesla crashed into a home and killed a 76-year-old woman last month.
Michael David Butler, 44, was arrested by the Harris County Sheriff’s Office vehicular crimes division and charged with manslaughter in connection with the woman’s death, according to an update by police.
He was booked into Harris County Jail and his bond was set to US$150,000, according to jail records.
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office said Butler drove into the front room of a residence on June 19 and pinned the female resident, identified as Martha Avila, who was pronounced deceased.
Butler told police that the vehicle was on autopilot at the time of the crash.
Investigators said Butler was driving a Tesla Model 3 when he failed to maintain a single lane, left the roadway and crashed into the residence, according to a news release from police.
Butler’s Tesla entered through the brick residence at a high speed and struck Avila, who was inside, police said.
Police said the woman was taken by a medical helicopter to a hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.
The sheriff’s office said Butler showed no signs of intoxication and was co-operative during the investigation, according to the news release.
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When Global News reached out to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office for further comment, it said that this remains “an active and open investigation.”
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration told Global News it has launched a special investigation into the crash.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk appeared to address the reports of the crash on June 22, writing on X, “This makes no sense. FSD (Full Self-Driving) drives slowly through neighborhood streets and this was a high-speed crash!”
Ashok Elluswamy, vice-president of autopilot for Tesla, also commented on the crash on X, writing, “Yup. In this case, the driver manually overrode self-driving by pressing the accelerator all the way to 100% of the accelerator pedal in this residential area. They reached a speed of 73 mph during the crash, and had the accelerator pressed even after the crash.”
Since the crash, Avila’s family has announced it is suing Tesla and Butler following the fatal crash.
Avila’s daughter, Jennifer Barbour, and her husband, Justin Barbour, filed a lawsuit last week in Harris County District Court, alleging a “design defect” involving Tesla and a failure to warn, according to NBC News, ABC News and the Houston Chronicle.
Global News has not independently viewed the lawsuit.
The lawsuit also alleges negligence against Tesla and the car’s driver, Butler, as a defendant, according to the outlets.
Avila’s family alleges the Tesla was in autopilot mode and that the system has “a history of known danger,” NBC News reports.
The lawsuit reportedly cites a 2023 Washington Post analysis of government data that “identified at least 17 fatal incidents linked to Tesla’s Autopilot,” according to the lawsuit, obtained by NBC News.
“The actions and inactions of Defendant Butler were done with reckless disregard for a substantial risk of severe bodily injury,” the lawsuit alleges.
The lawsuit seeks more than US$1 million in damages.
Global News has reached out to Tesla for comment on the lawsuit, but hasn’t received a response.
In 2023, Tesla recalled nearly all vehicles sold in the U.S. to update software and fix a defective system that’s supposed to ensure drivers are paying attention when using autopilot.
Documents posted by U.S. safety regulators said the update would increase warnings and alerts to drivers and even limit the areas where basic versions of autopilot can operate.
The recall came after a two-year investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration into a series of crashes that happened while the autopilot partially automated driving system was in use.
— with files from The Associated Press
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
