DRIGGS, IDAHO — A deadly 2023 head-on collision between a Tesla Model X and an oncoming tractor-trailer is back in the spotlight this week because a new lawsuit filed December 23 was recently moved into federal court, accusing Tesla’s driver-assistance system of letting the vehicle cross the center line and slam into the big rig.

According to the newly filed complaint, the crash happened shortly before 10 p.m. on Idaho State Highway 33 as the Tesla traveled east into a gentle curve and suddenly drifted into the westbound lane, where it collided head-on with an oncoming 2007 Kenworth tractor-trailer hauling roughly 90,000 pounds of grain. The impact crushed the Tesla and killed all occupants inside.

The lawsuit alleges the Tesla was sold with driver-assistance capabilities that created a false sense of security, and claims systems including Autosteer and other lane-keeping and lane-departure safety features failed to prevent the vehicle from leaving its lane and entering the path of the tractor-trailer. The filing also argues that even if full self-driving features were not actively engaged at the moment of the crash, the vehicle’s safety systems should have continued working as designed to help keep the Tesla in its lane.

The victims were identified in the complaint as Jennifer Blaine, 46, along with her daughters Denali, 11, and Emily, 22, and Emily’s husband Zachary Leavitt, 24, as they traveled toward an overnight trip. The lawsuit says the family had stopped earlier to eat and charge the vehicle before continuing the drive, and that the tractor-trailer driver was not accused of wrongdoing in the filing.

The case, brought by Nathan Blaine, seeks damages and places primary responsibility on Tesla’s technology and marketing claims about semi-autonomous driving. The lawsuit is now the key “update” driving the renewed coverage of the incident, as the family pushes the allegations into a federal court fight over what the vehicle’s driver-assistance systems were supposed to do — and what went wrong when the Tesla entered the tractor-trailer’s lane.

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