A 22-year-old driver from Sacramento crashed his Tesla into a California Highway Patrol vehicle on Interstate 80 in Fairfield on October 13. The driver reported he was asleep with the Full Self-Driving system engaged at the time of the collision.
The incident occurred near midnight at a site where officers were managing a previous fatal accident. Despite the presence of flares and cones marking four closed lanes, the Tesla entered the restricted area at highway speed and struck a patrol car containing two officers.
Both officers sustained serious injuries, while the Tesla driver suffered minor injuries. The California Highway Patrol is currently investigating the crash, and Tesla vehicle logs will be analyzed to verify the status of the driver-assistance software.
This event follows a series of similar incidents involving Tesla vehicles and emergency scenes. In December 2023, Tesla recalled over 2 million vehicles following a federal investigation into collisions with stationary emergency responders, implementing software updates to improve driver-attention monitoring.
