A deadly collision between a Tesla and a motorcycle in the United States that was initially reported with almost no public attention has now taken on new dimensions after examination of Tesla's own data.
According to Eitna quoting Electrek, the incident occurred on July 23, 2025, at the intersection of Germantown Pike and Hemple Road in the city of Moraine, Ohio. In the incident, a 55-year-old motorcyclist named Leonidas Davis was ejected from his three-wheeled motorcycle after the impact and died at the scene.
Initial reports from local media described the vehicle involved only as a “sedan” and made no mention of a Tesla or whether its driver-assistance systems were active. But a review of Tesla filings with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows the vehicle involved was a 2024 Tesla Model X.
According to data recorded by Tesla, the vehicle’s automated system status was reported as “Verified Engaged,” meaning the company’s telematics data confirmed that one of the Autopilot or Full Self-Driving (FSD) systems was active within 30 seconds prior to the collision. However, Tesla did not specify which system was active. The recorded speed of the vehicle before the crash was about 49 miles per hour, roughly 79 kilometers per hour.
More controversially, Tesla said it possesses information such as event recorder data, telematics, video, and the police report, but portions that could clarify the exact cause of the incident - including the collision narrative, software version, and information about the system’s operational domain - have been redacted as “trade secret information.”
The incident also rekindles longstanding concerns about the performance of Tesla’s driver-assistance systems around motorcycles. There have been past reports of Teslas equipped with Autopilot colliding with motorcycles or failing to properly detect and respond to them.
Review shows the timestamp recorded in Tesla’s data also matches the time reported by police, and the vehicle specifications, crash location, the motorcycle, and the rider’s death all point to a single event.
This case raises an important question: should data related to deadly crashes involving driver-assistance systems remain classified as trade secrets? Critics argue that in incidents where a driver-assistance system was active at the time of a crash, releasing the incident narrative, software version, and the relevant video is essential for evaluating public safety.