A former Tesla manager who oversaw Full Self-Driving testing operations in Houston is suing the company, claiming it fired him after he raised alarms about dangerous understaffing in its robotaxi safety program.
Javier Medrano managed a team of safety operators who rode in Tesla vehicles to test the company's Full Self-Driving software from October 2024 through May 1, 2025. His lawsuit, spotted by The Independent and reported by Engadget, accuses Tesla of unlawful retaliation and claims the company's failure to respond to his concerns turned its robotaxis into what he called "rolling hazards on public streets."
The core issue, according to the filing, was the ratio of safety operators to managers. Medrano says Tesla Autopilot Director Pete Scheutzow set a baseline of one manager for every 15 operators. Medrano's team grew to 38 operators, well beyond that limit.
The lawsuit says Medrano raised the problem directly with Scheutzow, warning that the imbalance could affect his ability to function, including telling him he was concerned about "not sleeping or eating correctly." Scheutzow allegedly dismissed the concern by saying "I don't get the impression you're drowning."
The situation came to a head during an accident that occurred under Medrano's oversight. According to the lawsuit, Medrano processed the crash "while physically asleep" and gave the operator involved "unsafe guidance" that led to her remaining at the scene for an hour, where she was approached by an allegedly impaired third party.
After the crash, Medrano attempted to formally escalate his concerns and document that Tesla had withheld resources from his region. The lawsuit says those efforts led directly to his firing.
Medrano is asking to be reinstated and is seeking restitution for an unvested equity award, along with front and back pay and compensatory damages for what the filing describes as "emotional distress, familial strain and severe financial stress." Engadget said Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The lawsuit arrives at a difficult moment for Tesla's autonomous vehicle program. In May, Reuters reported that Tesla may be overstating the safety record of its Full Self-Driving software. Data labelers working with camera footage used by Tesla vehicles to navigate reportedly see the system fail at routine driving tasks on a regular basis. Medrano's suit adds a managerial dimension to those existing software concerns, arguing that the humans responsible for monitoring FSD vehicles were themselves stretched too thin to do their jobs safely.
