Police Activate Autopilot Sensors To Stop Tesla With Sleeping Driver

According to officers, they followed the car for over a mile while the driver slept before pulling it over

Falling asleep behind the wheel is something that can turn deadly fast. In the case of one young man in South Carolina, a semi-autonomous Tesla Model 3 actually saved him from an accident when he fell asleep. When he did wake up, he must have been surprised to see several police officers who had pulled the car over. Now, he’s facing several serious charges after police say they found drugs in the vehicle.

Officers from the Wilson’s Mills PD say that they received a call on Saturday around 4 p.m. about a driver who appeared to be asleep. Sure enough, that’s what they say they saw when they found a white Tesla Model 3 traveling down U.S. Highway 70.

Read: Tesla Driver Who Hit And Killed Motorcyclist Was Allegedly Looking At His Phone And Using FSD

Evidently, officers couldn’t wake the man despite the use of sirens and lights. The Model 3 continued down the road with police trying to figure out what to do. Eventually, according to CBS17, they positioned their cruisers in front of the Tesla, thus activating the Autopilot’s sensors, and the car came to a stop.

Then the officers woke up the driver, identified as 25-year-old Michael Goodman, performed a field sobriety test and searched the vehicle.

What they found was dozens of boxes of vape pens. They weren’t typical corner store items though. Instead, they had THC, methamphetamine, and MDMA in them.

Now, Goodman faces charges of trafficking MDMA and methamphetamine, reckless driving, felony possession of marijuana, possession with intent to sell, and failure to heed emergency lights. He posted a $50,000 secured bond to get out of Johnston County Detention Center until his next court appearance. 

We’re just glad nobody was hurt. We wonder if Goodman credits the Tesla for keeping him safe or blames it for pulling over though.