Dhaka, Aug. 4 -- A Miami federal jury has ordered Tesla to pay over $240 million in damages after determining that its Autopilot system was partly responsible for a fatal 2019 crash in Florida, even though the driver admitted to being distracted by his phone at the time.

The jury found that while the driver, George McGee, acted negligently, Tesla also bore significant responsibility due to failures in its driver assistance technology. The crash killed 22-year-old Naibel Benavides Leon and seriously injured her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo, as the couple were stargazing in a parked vehicle.

The verdict comes at a critical moment for Tesla and CEO Elon Musk, who is promoting self-driving technology and preparing to roll out a robotaxi service...