{"schema_version":"0.10.0","id":"LR-2026-0524","record_version":1,"title":"Wrongful death lawsuit after driver trapped in burning Model Y","verification":{"human_verified":false,"method":"automated_gate","auto_verified":true,"score":50.8,"score_breakdown":{"source_authority":12.1,"independent_corroboration":7.0,"implicated_party_confirmed":0.0,"citation_integrity":14.0,"specificity":6.0,"completeness":4.16,"unhedged_language":5.0},"checks":{"schema_valid":true,"every_field_cited":true,"quotes_verbatim":true,"source_fetched":true,"distinct_incident":true,"dates_plausible":true,"sources_agree":true,"source_describes_incident":true,"severe_backed_by_source":true,"record_integrity":true,"eligible":true,"about_this_case":true},"gate_version":"gate-2026-10-18.7","cross_check_model":null,"cross_check_agreement":null,"duplicate_of":null,"verified_by":null,"verified_at":"2026-11-01","extraction_run_id":null,"evidence_level":{"level":"preliminary","reason":"Publisher not yet named · subject to change","original_document":null,"reports_total":1,"reports_independent":0,"reports_derivative":0,"developing":false,"disputed":false,"rules_version":"evidence-2026-10-29.1","computed_at":"2026-11-01","history":[{"date":"2026-11-01","from_level":null,"to_level":"preliminary","reason":"Publisher not yet named · subject to change"}]},"sources_hash":"4ed41fa61f5b2a850ff6f798fe416358631cbc067d404c2f0d9d17000a39ea49"},"system":{"model_name":"Model Y","model_version":"2023","developer":"unknown","harness":null,"tools_granted":[],"permissions_scope":null,"autonomy_level":"unknown","guardrails_present":[],"deployment_context":"unknown","tier":null,"lifecycle_stage":null,"integration_type":null,"intended_use":null,"safeguard_state":null,"production_intended":null},"event":{"date_occurred":"2025-04-28","date_disclosed":"2026-04-13","incident_class":"physical_safety","failure_class":null,"agent_involved":null,"secondary_failure_classes":[],"trigger":"unknown","duration":null,"detection_method":"unknown","summary":"A 2023 Tesla Model Y was involved in a single-vehicle crash in Claremont, California, on April 28, 2025. According to the lawsuit filed by the family of passenger Rasheed Bledsoe, the vehicle's Autopilot system did not steer or brake to avoid a tree. The filing also alleges that the battery pack ignited after the impact and that the battery enclosure lacked adequate fire suppression. The lawsuit says the electronic door handles remained locked, trapping occupants. Both Bledsoe and driver Matthew McMahon were killed. The plaintiffs argue that the deaths could have been prevented with mechanical overrides or other physical fail-safes. The case has been filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. The source does not state the vehicle's speed or Tesla's response.","tags":[],"date_detected":null,"near_miss":null,"root_cause":null,"root_cause_detail":null,"failure_class_detail":null,"responsible_party":null,"adversarial_actor":null,"input_provenance":null,"time_to_contain":null,"operations_paused":null,"remediation":null,"precursor_events":null,"primary_risk":"RK18"},"impact":{"direct_loss_usd":null,"remediation_hours":null,"records_exposed":null,"third_parties_affected_count":null,"severity":"severe","severity_because":"Test: safety of life. The source states two men were killed.","harm_class":["bodily"],"affected_description":null,"protected_class_involved":null,"data_categories_exposed":[],"loss_range_usd":null,"reversibility":null,"downstream_exposure_count":null},"evidence":{"sources":[{"url":"https://www.motorbiscuit.com/trapped-in-a-burning-model-y-new-wrongful-death-lawsuit-targets-tesla-autopilot/","publisher":"MotorBiscuit","date":"2026-04-13","type":"press","title":"Wrongful Death Lawsuit Targets Tesla After Driver Trapped in Burning Model Y - MotorBiscuit","archived_url":null,"attachment":"first_report"}],"per_field_confidence":{"system.model_name":"C","system.model_version":"C","event.date_occurred":"C","event.incident_class":"C","impact.harm_class":"C","context.country":"C","context.industry":"C","impact.severity":"D","impact.severity_because":"D","event.primary_risk":"D","event.summary":"C","system.autonomy_level":"D","system.deployment_context":"D","event.trigger":"D","event.detection_method":"D","system.developer":"D","event.date_disclosed":"D","context.denominator_available":"D"},"field_citations":{"system.model_name":[{"source_index":0,"quote":"According to the filing, a 2023 Tesla Model Y veered off the road and violently slammed into a tree before bursting into flames."}],"system.model_version":[{"source_index":0,"quote":"According to the filing, a 2023 Tesla Model Y veered off the road and violently slammed into a tree before bursting into flames."}],"event.date_occurred":[{"source_index":0,"quote":"Taking place in Claremont, California, at roughly 2:00 a.m. on April 28, 2025."}],"event.incident_class":[{"source_index":0,"quote":"The electric automaker is facing a brand-new wrongful death lawsuit following a horrific, fiery crash in Southern California that claimed the lives of two men."}],"impact.harm_class":[{"source_index":0,"quote":"Both Bledsoe and the vehicle’s driver, 38-year-old Matthew McMahon, were killed in the wreck."}],"context.country":[{"source_index":0,"quote":"The case, officially listed as Bledsoe, et al., v. Tesla Inc., et al., has been filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California."}],"context.industry":[{"source_index":0,"quote":"The electric automaker is facing a brand-new wrongful death lawsuit following a horrific, fiery crash in Southern California that claimed the lives of two men."}],"impact.severity":[{"source_index":0,"quote":"The electric automaker is facing a brand-new wrongful death lawsuit following a horrific, fiery crash in Southern California that claimed the lives of two men."}],"impact.severity_because":[{"source_index":0,"quote":"Both Bledsoe and the vehicle’s driver, 38-year-old Matthew McMahon, were killed in the wreck."}],"event.summary":[{"source_index":0,"quote":"According to the filing, a 2023 Tesla Model Y veered off the road and violently slammed into a tree before bursting into flames."},{"source_index":0,"quote":"The lawsuit alleges that the Model Y’s Autopilot system suffered a failure, completely missing the tree and failing to initiate any sort of evasive steering or emergency braking to prevent the collision."},{"source_index":0,"quote":"When the Model Y struck the tree, the lithium-ion battery pack ignited."},{"source_index":0,"quote":"According to the filing, the doors remained locked and entirely inoperable after the crash, effectively trapping Bledsoe inside the burning cabin."},{"source_index":0,"quote":"Both Bledsoe and the vehicle’s driver, 38-year-old Matthew McMahon, were killed in the wreck."},{"source_index":0,"quote":"The plaintiffs argue that the fatality could have been prevented with standard physical fail-safes."},{"source_index":0,"quote":"The case, officially listed as Bledsoe, et al., v. Tesla Inc., et al., has been filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California."}]},"notes_on_gaps":"Single press source reporting plaintiffs' allegations; allegations are not treated as established facts. Tesla's response is not reported. Filing date and disclosure date are not stated; the article date 2026-04-13 is publication date only and is not used as a disclosure date. Vehicle speed, driver actions, seatbelt use and posted limit are not stated; the eyewitness high-speed report is not used as fact. Whether an autonomous agent was engaged is not stated, so agent_involved, failure_class and autonomy_level are omitted. Trigger, root cause and detection method are not stated. The number of affected third parties is not stated. Severity judged severe under the safety-of-life test. The link to control I10 is my judgement mapping the plaintiffs' physical fail-safe claim to physical safety interlocks, and the outcome is an allegation. Model name Model Y is taken from the vehicle description; Autopilot is named as the allegedly failing system. [case created by the backfill: read by claude-haiku-5-5, backfill-2026-11-01.2, 2026-11-01; not yet reviewed] [2026-11-01: evidence level set: Preliminary (Publisher not yet named · subject to change)]"},"context":{"industry":"automotive","org_size_band":null,"country":"US","denominator_available":false,"denominator":null,"related_incident_ids":[],"systemic_exposure":null,"shared_model_id":null,"upstream_incident_id":null,"incident_evidence":null,"regulatory":null,"coverage":null},"narrative":{"steps":[{"step":"doing","text":"A 2023 Tesla Model Y veered off the road and hit a tree.","quote":"According to the filing, a 2023 Tesla Model Y veered off the road and violently slammed into a tree before bursting into flames.","source_index":0,"grade":"C"}],"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"backfill-2026-11-01.2","extracted_at":"2026-11-01","source_urls":["https://www.motorbiscuit.com/trapped-in-a-burning-model-y-new-wrongful-death-lawsuit-targets-tesla-autopilot/"]},"analysis":{"sections":{"timeline":[{"text":"Crash in Claremont, California, at roughly 2:00 a.m.","quote":"Taking place in Claremont, California, at roughly 2:00 a.m. on April 28, 2025.","source_index":0,"when":"2025-04-28"},{"text":"Vehicle veered off the road, hit a tree and burst into flames.","quote":"According to the filing, a 2023 Tesla Model Y veered off the road and violently slammed into a tree before bursting into flames.","source_index":0,"when":"2025-04-28"}]},"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"backfill-2026-11-01.2","extracted_at":"2026-11-01","source_urls":["https://www.motorbiscuit.com/trapped-in-a-burning-model-y-new-wrongful-death-lawsuit-targets-tesla-autopilot/"]}}