Tesla Self-Driving Software Was Active in Fatal Stop Sign Crash

The collision happened around 6:57 p.m. on Sunday, July 6, 2025, at the intersection of County Route 671 and Chestnut Avenue in Atlantic County. New Jersey State Police spokesman Jeffrey Lebron said the Model 3 failed to stop at a stop sign and struck a Honda Civic that was turning left. The Civic's driver, Stephen Field, suffered fatal injuries. The Tesla's driver and three passengers were taken to a hospital with moderate injuries. The investigation remains open.

Local reports described the crash as a Tesla that ran a stop sign, with no mention of Autopilot, "Full Self-Driving," or any driver-assist system. But under a NHTSA Standing General Order requiring automakers to report crashes where a Level 2 system was engaged within 30 seconds of impact, Tesla filed a report.

It identifies the vehicle as a 2019 Model 3 and marks the automation "Engagement Status" as "Verified Engaged," meaning Tesla confirmed through its own telematics that the system was active.

Tesla then redacted the three fields that would explain what happened: the crash narrative, the software version, and whether the road fell within the system's approved operating area — the same "confidential business information" redactions Tesla applies to 99.9% of its reports, per Electrek's ongoing investigation matching reported crashes to Tesla's NHTSA data.

Because the software version is redacted, it cannot be confirmed whether basic Autopilot or FSD was running. Responding to stop signs is a City-Streets function handled by FSD, while basic Autopilot is built as a highway lane-keeping system that does not react to stop signs.

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