A 76-year-old grandmother was killed Friday night when a Tesla Model 3 allegedly operating on Autopilot careened off a quiet Katy street and smashed straight through the front of her brick home.
Michael Butler, 44, was driving the electric vehicle eastbound on Rose Hollow Lane around 8 p.m. when it failed to stay in its lane, jumped a curb and tore into the residence on Blooming Park Lane in the Katy area of Harris County, Texas, authorities said.
The car ripped through the front of the home and struck Martha Avila Mantilla, who was standing in the front room. She was airlifted to Memorial Hermann Hospital but later died from her injuries.
Butler told deputies an automated driving-assistance system, Tesla’s Autopilot, was engaged at the time of the crash.
Shocking surveillance video captured the terrifying sequence: the Tesla speeding down the residential street before barreling toward the house.
The victim’s daughter, Jennifer Barbour, posted the footage online and wrote: “This is the Tesla driver flying into my home. My mom didn’t deserve this.”The devastated family has been forced out of their now-uninhabitable home and is staying in a hotel while mourning the sudden loss. A GoFundMe page has been launched to help them.
Neighbors who were outside celebrating a child’s birthday party nearby described the horrifying scene.
One witness said the car was “flying by” at what appeared to be 60-70 mph before it jumped the curb and slammed into the house. “It just happened so quick,” the neighbor added. “The kids were scared.”Butler suffered injuries and was taken to a hospital by ambulance. He showed no signs of intoxication, has been cooperating with investigators, and has not been charged.
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the crash, including what role, if any, the Autopilot system played. Vehicle data logs are expected to be key in determining whether the feature was active and why the car failed to maintain control at such high speed in a neighborhood.
