A Tesla driver told the California Highway Patrol (CHP) that his car was in Full Self-Driving mode when it hit a 71-year-old man crossing Interstate 80 in Vallejo early Thursday, Oct. 22. The man died. The Solano Area CHP's statement does not confirm that mode was on. The San Francisco Chronicle was first to report the crash.

What the CHP says happened

From the Solano Area CHP statement:

  • When and where: about 2:34 a.m., westbound I-80 at the I-780 interchange.
  • The man: 71, from Vallejo. He received fatal injuries.
  • The driver: a 26-year-old San Francisco man, cooperative, who stayed at the scene.
  • Full Self-Driving: the release says "The driver stated the vehicle was being operated in Full Self-Driving (FSD) autonomous mode."
  • Preliminary review: the Tesla was in the #2 lane at about 70 mph. The man entered from the right shoulder and crossed toward the center divide.
  • The video: the driver's dashcam captured the crash. The CHP says: "The video showed the Tesla's brakes being applied as the vehicle steered to the left in an effort to avoid the pedestrian. Despite these evasive actions, the right front portion of the Tesla struck the individual."
  • Afterward: at least one more vehicle appears to have struck him. None stopped, and that vehicle and its driver are unknown.

"The Solano Area CHP is actively investigating," the release says. It asks witnesses, and anyone with information about the other vehicles, to contact the Solano Area CHP office.

What has not been stated

  • The CHP has not said it confirmed Full Self-Driving was on. That detail is the driver's statement.
  • The release does not give the Tesla's model, its software version or a cause.
  • Tesla has not commented publicly.

An earlier Solano County case

On Oct. 13, a Tesla hit a CHP patrol car on I-80 in Fairfield, Electrek reported. Its 22-year-old driver told investigators he was asleep with Full Self-Driving on, and the two officers inside were seriously hurt. The CHP said: "Technology does not relieve drivers of their responsibility to safely operate their vehicles."

Why it matters

Both cases rest on what drivers told investigators the system was doing. Until the CHP or Tesla's vehicle data says otherwise, that detail is a statement, not a finding. In the Fairfield case the CHP said technology does not relieve drivers of responsibility; it has made no such statement about the Vallejo driver. Related: Tesla's Q3 results and Waymo's Las Vegas airport pickups, a driverless service.