Photo via Daily Mail

Brazen Tesla driver seen in harrowing video catching up on SLEEP while speeding down California highway

Read the original at Daily Mail ↗
Cite

Kozhasbay, D. (2026, September 20). Brazen Tesla driver seen in harrowing video catching up on SLEEP while speeding down California highway. Daily Mail. https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16146183/Brazen-Tesla-driver-seen-harrowing-video-catching-SLEEP-speeding-California-highway.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Daily Mail · collected 2026-09-20 · by Dariya Kozhasbay

Quick Summary

A Tesla driver was caught sleeping at 60mph on a California highway, with the car’s automatic driving feature activated. The California Highway Patrol cited the driver for unsafe speed and used the incident to remind drivers that features like Full Self-Driving (FSD) are not substitutes for human control; drivers must remain alert. The agency emphasized that napping while in motion is illegal. This case highlights ongoing tensions between Tesla and California authorities over FSD marketing, with recent data showing a high number of crashes involving the technology, including fatal ones in California.
Written by AI on 2026-09-21, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

In Solano County, California, a Tesla driver was caught on camera sleeping while traveling at 60 mph using the car’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) feature. The incident occurred in February, and a California Highway Patrol (CHP) officer pulled over the vehicle after noticing the seemingly asleep driver. The CHP issued an "Unsafe Speed" citation to the driver, emphasizing that FSD is meant to assist rather than replace drivers who must remain attentive.

The CHP used this case to remind Tesla owners that full presence at the wheel is still legally required despite advanced technology features. A social media post by the agency quipped, “Power naps belong in a parking spot, not in the driver’s seat.” Additionally, there has been ongoing legal tension between Tesla and California authorities regarding the use of terms like "autopilot," with the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) requesting Tesla to omit such misleading marketing language.

Written for “Tesla Driver Drowsy Driving Incident” on 2026-10-30, grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Tesla Driver Drowsy Driving Incident
Technology · 2 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 20% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
New York Post
Hedges 8 of 21 claims Outlet record 66/100
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
15
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
20%
3 of 15 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
68/100
Daily Mail's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
2
Technology
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-21 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Daily Mail · 8386 article(s) · 20 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 20 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Dariya Kozhasbay
52 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 The president was expected to head to Salina, Kansas, on Saturday to boost Republican Senator Roger Marshall, who's in a surprisingly tight reelection race.
🔮 A new search will take place as part of the effort to find the Rutgers University student from New Jersey who has been missing for almost a year.
🔮 There is a possibility that a structural quirk in the bridge could've caused a fall, police told The Kansas City Star (KCS).
🔮 Witnesses told police they heard the student crying and saying he couldn't breathe.
🔮 She inspired me to want to live like she did, and it would be as bold and courageous and curious about the world as she did,' said Jacynda Carmichael during the memorial, The Bend Bulletin reported.
🔮 A school district spokesperson told the outlet: 'We know this loss will be deeply felt throughout our school community.
🔮 'If we ever need her for something, she would take a red-eye flight on short notice,' he said.
🔮 I may have been your foster mom but you were part of our family, and you will be missed, son.'
🔮 Thelma Candelaria is survived by her seven children Her 21-year-old daughter, Shaunia, will now be stepping into the role of head of household, with the love and support of her 29-year-old sister, Alaisha,' the family wrote on GoFundMe.
🔮 We will remember her for her dedication and discipline, and for taking her talent to the Mr Olympia stage,' the branch said in a statement.
Also by Dariya Kozhasbay
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 52 articles by Dariya Kozhasbay →

Topics

CHP California California Highway Patrol Tesla the California DMV

Subjects

Tesla ORG · 13× California GPE · 4× CHP ORG · 3× California Highway Patrol ORG · 3× the California DMV ORG · 3× Electrek ORG · 2× Daily Mail ORG · 1× Google ORG · 1× Instagram ORG · 1× Solano GPE · 1×

Narrative

A video shared by California Highway Patrol showed a Tesla driver slumped over and asleep while driving down a highway to get home from work California Highway Patrol issued a citation for 'Unsafe Speed' to a driver who had fallen asleep while going 60mph down a highway, relying on the Full Self-Driving function on his Tesla Tesla and California have been embroiled in a legal back and forth over the car company's self driving feature. In February of this year, Tesla sued the state after the California DMV found them to be in violation of state law for misleadingly using the term 'autopilot' in their marketing. The California DMV requested that Tesla omit the word 'autopilot' to avoid giving drivers the impression that their full presence is not required at the wheel, or else its dealer and manufacturer licenses will be suspended by the DMV for 30 days, the press release stated.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-21
🔮 A video shared by California Highway Patrol showed a Tesla driver slumped over and asleep while driving down a highway to get home from work California Highway Patrol issued a citation for 'Unsafe Speed' to a driver who had fallen asleep while going 60mph down a highway, relying on the Full Self-Driving function on his Tesla Tesla and California have been embroiled in a legal back and forth over the car company's self driving feature. In February of this year, Tesla sued the state after the California DMV found them to be in violation of state law for misleadingly using the term 'autopilot' in their marketing. The California DMV requested that Tesla omit the word 'autopilot' to avoid giving drivers the impression that their full presence is not required at the wheel, or else its dealer and manufacturer licenses will be suspended by the DMV for 30 days, the press release stated.

Claims (15 extracted, 3 hedged)

- See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source A Tesla driver was caught sleeping while going 60mph down a California highway. 'FSD Means Full Self-Driving - not 'Full Drive Snooze,' California Highway Patrol wrote in an Instagram post criticizing the dozy driver. asserted
Patrol → see → driver
A video posted by CHP Solano showed the driver slumped over in the driver's seat of his Tesla, with dark sunglasses covering his eyes as the car's automatic driving feature took over for him. asserted
feature → post → him
Shortly after, the driver was pulled over and issued a citation for 'Unsafe Speed,' according to the CHP. uncertain
driver → pull → CHP
The agency used this incident to remind Tesla drivers of the laws governing their vehicles: 'Features like Tesla's FSD are Level 2 driver assistance tools. asserted
Features → use → FSD
By law, they assist your driving—they do not replace you. asserted
they → assist → you
' Sleeping at the wheel is still illegal in a self-driving car, the agency wrote. asserted
agency → sleep → car
'You are still the legal driver, and taking a nap while in motion violates California traffic safety laws. asserted
taking → take → laws
'Power naps belong in a parking spot, not in the driver's seat. asserted
naps → belong → seat
The driver's identity was not released by the CHP. asserted
identity → release → CHP
A video shared by California Highway Patrol showed a Tesla driver slumped over and asleep while driving down a highway to get home from work California Highway Patrol issued a citation for 'Unsafe Speed' to a driver who had fallen asleep while going 60mph down a highway, relying on the Full Self-Driving function on his Tesla Tesla and California have been embroiled in a legal back and forth over the car company's self driving feature. In February of this year, Tesla sued the state after the California DMV found them to be in violation of state law for misleadingly using the term 'autopilot' in their marketing. The California DMV requested that Tesla omit the word 'autopilot' to avoid giving drivers the impression that their full presence is not required at the wheel, or else its dealer and manufacturer licenses will be suspended by the DMV for 30 days, the press release stated. asserted
release → share → days
Tesla agreed to erase the word from their advertising, successfully swerving the suspensions, but retaliated by suing the California DMV in an attempt to reverse the 'false advertising' ruling, CNBC reported. asserted
CNBC → agree → ruling
Following the legal battle, Tesla now uses the term 'Full Self-Driving (Supervised)' instead of 'Full Self-Driving Capability' to reflect the legal circumstances of the driver more accurately. asserted
Tesla → follow → driver
July 2026, Tesla logged 236 crash reports to federal regulators, the highest number it has ever reported in a single month, according to Electrek. uncertain
it → log → Electrek
Four of the crashes were deadly, and all four happened while Full Self-Driving was on, according to Tesla's July filings seen by Electrek. uncertain
Driving → happen → Electrek
Half of these took place in California. asserted
Half → take → California
💬Give feedback
🕘History 🎫Support