On Thursday, the first fatal crash involving a car in self-driving mode was announced. The government plans to investigate the design and performance of the Tesla Model S Sedan’s system.

40-year-old Joshua D. Brown of Canton, Ohio, was killed in a collision on May 7th while he was in Williston, Florida. According to CNBC, his car’s cameras could not distinguish the white color of the side of a tractor-trailer from the glaring sunlight. Because of this, the car’s brakes failed to automatically activate.

Brown crashed into 42-year-old truck driver and owner of Okemah Express, Frank Baressi. Reports indicated that the crash happened when Baressi’s semi truck turned left in front of the Tesla. This took place at an intersection of a divided highway where there was no traffic light.

The trucker said that the Tesla driver was watching Harry Potter on the TV when he collided with the semi. Baressi continued said that Brown was driving so fast that he couldn’t see him.

Baressi told reporters that the movie:

“…was still playing when he died and snapped a telephone pole a quarter mile down the road.”

He added that he didn’t see the movie playing but only heard it. Tesla commented that it’s impossible to watch movies on the Model S touch screen, and the initial police reports failed to mention the movie.

When emergency crews arrived, the damage was extensive. They found the car in a nearby yard that was hundreds of feet from the crash site. The Tesla’s roof was totally ripped off. Brown was pronounced dead at the crash site and investigators were called to the scene.

Brown’s obituary stated that he was a member of the Navy Seals for 11 years, and ironically, a huge enthusiast of his 2015 Tesla Model S which he nicknamed, “Tessy.” Brown had previously given credit to his autopilot for saving him from a crash in April when a semi truck swerved into his lane on a highway.

He even made a video where he expressed his fondness for the system:

Brown wrote:

“Hands down the best car I have ever owned and use it to its full extent.”

In a statement, Tesla described Brown as:

“a friend to Tesla and the broader EV (electric vehicle) community, a person who spent his life focused on innovation and the promise of technology and who believed strongly in Tesla’s mission.”

Tesla also explained that the new auto-pilot system is still uncertain and drivers must manually enable it.

Tesla commented:

“Autopilot is getting better all the time, but it is not perfect and still requires the driver to remain alert.”

The company stated that this is the first known death in over 130 million miles that Autopilot has been in operation. Investigations are underway to determine if the system was working as it was meant to.

Tesla explained:

“When used in conjunction with driver oversight, the data is unequivocal that Autopilot reduces driver workload and results in a statistically significant improvement in safety.”

Mike Harley, an analyst at Kelley Blue Book stated that because the technology relies on cameras, lasers, and computers to notice objects.

He noted:

“They aren’t sophisticated enough to overcome blindness from bright or low contrast light.”

Karl Brauer, a senior analyst with Kelley Blue Book, explained that this accident is a huge loss for Tesla’s reputation. He added that Tesla needs to make sure its drivers realize that the autopilot should be used to assist drivers rather than to fully take over control.

Also he mentioned that Tesla needs to update their cars’ software to make autopilot turn off if it senses that the driver has let go of the steering wheel for a period of time.

Brown’s death was a tragedy, but unfortunately more deaths are to be expected until the technology is refined.