The Ontario Provincial Police have charged a Tesla driver with careless driving after an officer found the driver asleep behind the wheel on Ottawa’s Highway 417 during Tuesday’s rush hour, Electrek reported.
OPP East Region posted about the stop Wednesday morning. Police did not name the brand or the driver-assist system, Electrek reported, but wrote that “even though your vehicle has an autonomous driving feature, drivers are still required to pay due care and attention when behind the wheel.” Electrek said a photo OPP shared showed a new-generation Model Y. According to OPP, the officer could see the driver’s eyes were closed and hands were off the steering wheel, and police pulled in close to capture body-camera footage before lighting up the cruiser. This report does not state that Full Self-Driving was engaged; OPP did not identify a specific system.
Electrek said the charge carries a $490 set fine and six demerit points on conviction, and that if the case goes to court, Ontario’s Highway Traffic Act allows fines up to $2,000, up to six months in jail, and a licence suspension of up to two years. The site also listed other 2026 Canadian cases it has reported in which police said Tesla drivers appeared asleep, and noted an October incident in Fairfield, California, in which a driver told the California Highway Patrol he was asleep on FSD when his Tesla hit a patrol car — a crash already covered separately. Those earlier cases are Electrek’s accounting, not findings in the Ottawa charge.