--- title: "Tesla Driver Facing Murder Charge for Getting Angry and Running Down Motorcycle on Purpose, Fleeing Barefoot and Flipping Off Bystanders" description: "In sunny San Diego, a reckless Tesla driver is being charged with murder after a shocking road rage incident left a man twice his age dead." date: "2025-07-10" modified: "2025-07-10" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/tesla-murder-road-rage-motorcyclist" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Tesla" tags: - "car accident" - "model y" - "road rage" - "tesla" --- # Tesla Driver Facing Murder Charge for Getting Angry and Running Down Motorcycle on Purpose, Fleeing Barefoot and Flipping Off Bystanders ![In sunny San Diego, a reckless Tesla driver is being charged with murder after a shocking road rage incident left a man twice his age dead.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* In sunny San Diego, a reckless Tesla driver is being charged with murder after a shocking road rage incident left a man twice his age dead. According [to the local *NBC7* broadcaster](), police say that a 22-year-old Tesla driver was going a whopping 126 miles per hour when he rammed a 53-year-old motorcyclist from behind on Interstate 805, causing the older man to fly 500 feet, land on the roadway, and ultimately die. Prosecutors claim that the driver became enraged that the motorcyclist had been riding in the carpool lane — a loophole [allowed by California's highway laws]() — and intentionally sped up to hit him. "The force that was used by the Tesla as it careened into the motorcycle was so great that the rear license plate of the motorcycle imprinted itself onto the Tesla front bumper," one of the prosecutors in the case told *NBC7*. As the [*Times of San Diego* notes](), the alleged murderer was driving a red Model Y during the incident, and also slammed into a BMW and a pickup truck, per California Highway Patrol. The six people in the pickup, which included four minors, were taken to the hospital, and as *NBC7* notes, that part of the incident led to the driver picking up six assault charges alongside his first-degree murder charge and the single charge of hit-and-run resulting in a death. After the pileup, the driver abandoned his Tesla and took off barefoot down the highway. According to Jennifer Kiti, a witness who filmed the angry Model Y driver, the man caused a scene even on foot. "I think he was trying to get a ride, but people weren't falling for it," the mother told *NBC7. "*Then he started getting mad, like flipping people off." Once police finally caught up to the man, they surrounded him with guns drawn — but it still took a moment, the news broadcaster indicated, for him to finally stand down and allow himself to be taken into custody. As prosecutors claim, the man essentially confessed to everything. "This defendant told officers that he was speeding like the devil," those unnamed prosecutors told *NBC7*, "that he broke every safety rule possible, and that he hit \[the motorcyclist\] on purpose." With so many Tesla tragedies being the result of [faulty assisted driving technology](), this deadly incident in San Diego is a good reminder that good old-fashioned road rage is [still a major problem](). Unfortunately, this isn't the first time we've heard about a [Tesla driver becoming dangerously aggressive]() — and given how [unhinged Americans act]() when they drive, it probably won't be the last. **More on Tesla accidents:** [*Tesla's Self-Driving Mode Causes It to Get Hit by Train*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()