HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — A bond has been set for the man who was behind the wheel of a Tesla that crashed into a Katy, Texas-area home, killing a woman, according to court records.<\/p>\n
The alleged driver, 44-year-old Michael Butler, now faces a manslaughter charge. He went before a judge on Thursday morning, where his bond was set at $150,000. Online records show that as of Thursday morning, Butler is still in Harris County, Texas jail.<\/p>\n
According to authorities, the crash happened on June 19. Surveillance video shows Butler’s Tesla barreling into the home in Katy.<\/p>\n
Court documents state Butler was working as a DoorDash driver at the time of the incident. Butler allegedly told investigators that the last thing he remembered was operating the car on Highway 6 and in full self-driving mode.<\/p>\n
Butler reportedly said the car was on autopilot and then he “passed out.” Records alleged Butler denied feeling ill earlier in the day and has no history of seizures. He also tested negative for seizures, stroke, or heart attack, and no alcohol or street drugs were found in his system.<\/p>\n
As a result of the crash, 76-year-old Martha Avila was killed. Her family told ABC Houston affiliate KTRK they were cooking dinner and she happened to be in the front playroom of the home when the Tesla plowed through.<\/p>\n
At the time of the crash, investigators said Butler claimed his car was in self-driving mode, but Tesla since disputed that and claimed he overrode the feature.<\/p>\n
Updated court records state that investigators downloaded the crash data, black box, and received consent to search Butler’s phone. They reportedly found that Butler used full self-driving mode for multiple DoorDash locations before the crash with no issues.<\/p>\n