The
crown
jewel
of
the
Elon
Musk
collection
of
exploding
products
remains
the
Tesla
electric
vehicle.
Not
so
much
for
the
car
itself,
but
as
a
financial
vehicle
that
continues
to
inflate
his
net
worth…
even
beyond
what
Delaware
corporate
law
can
countenance.
While
Musk
still
requires
a
social
media
babysitter
—
a
condition
of
his
settlement
with
the
feds
over
past
securities
manipulation
claims
—
thanks
to
the
Supreme
Court’s
refusal
to
get
him
out
of
the
deal
he
signed,
that
may
not
be
enough
to
save
his
company
from
another
round
of
charges.
Failing
to
get
out
of
his
own
legal
commitments?
Seems
like
a
trend.
This
time,
it’s
all
about
Tesla’s
“self-driving”
claims
and
whether
its
marketing
claims
went
impermissibly
far
afield
of
reality
for
a
car
that
still
requires
an
alert
human
driving
to
jump
in.
In
an
exclusive
story,
Reuters
reports
that
the
federal
government
is
mulling
a
variety
of
responses
—
up
to
and
including
securities
and
wire
fraud
charges
—
over
the
self-driving
claims.
U.S.
regulators
have
separately
investigated
hundreds
of
crashes,
including
fatal
ones,
that
have
occurred
in
Teslas
with
Autopilot
engaged,
resulting
in
a
mass
recall
by
the
automaker.Reuters
exclusively
reported
the
U.S.
criminal
investigation
into
Tesla
in
October
2022,
and
is
now
the
first
to
report
the
specific
criminal
liability
federal
prosecutors
are
examining.Investigators
are
exploring
whether
Tesla
committed
wire
fraud,
which
involves
deception
in
interstate
communications,
by
misleading
consumers
about
its
driver-assistance
systems,
the
sources
said.
They
are
also
examining
whether
Tesla
committed
securities
fraud
by
deceiving
investors,
two
of
the
sources
said.
Before
Musk
responds
with
“I
was
on
Wifi
so
it
can’t
be
wire
fraud,
checkmate
n00bs”
or
something
equally
as
dazzling,
it’s
worth
noting
that
prosecutors
have
not
settled
on
anything
yet
according
to
Reuters.
To
what
extent
did
anyone
rely
on
the
autopilot
claims
when
either
purchasing
or
investing
in
Tesla?
Its
cachet
as
a
car
rests
in
its
environmentally
friendly
traits
and
its
cachet
as
a
stock
is…
being
a
meme
stock.
But
just
how
far
is
too
far
when
it
comes
to
puffery?
Tesla
has
advertised
its
system
as
an
“autopilot”
despite
being
little
more
than
a
driver
assistance
program.
Making
it
less
of
an
“autopilot”
than
a
“computer
willing
to
hold
the
wheel
steady
while
you
reach
for
the
fry
you
dropped.”
Tesla
maintains
that
they’ve
always
seen
autonomous
driving
as
more
of
a
long-term
goal
and
failing
to
match
the
hype
with
reality
doesn’t
make
it
fraud,
much
like
Boeing
markets
its
product
as
“airworthy”
and
by
gum,
they
hope
to
get
there
someday.
All
thorny
issues
for
prosecutors
to
hash
out.
For
now,
all
the
rest
of
us
can
do
is
take
a
page
from
Tesla
autopilot
users
and
say,
“let’s
see
where
it
goes
from
here.”
Exclusive:
In
Tesla
Autopilot
probe,
US
prosecutors
focus
on
securities,
wire
fraud
[Reuters]
Joe
Patrice is
a
senior
editor
at
Above
the
Law
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
Feel
free
to email
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments.
Follow
him
on Twitter if
you’re
interested
in
law,
politics,
and
a
healthy
dose
of
college
sports
news.
Joe
also
serves
as
a
Managing
Director
at
RPN
Executive
Search.
