Who was Krysta Tsukahara? California student burned alive in horrific Tesla Cybertruck crash, shocking details emerge

Three students, including 19-year-old Krysta Tsukahara, were killed in the early-morning crash last November when the Cybertruck hit a retaining wall and a tree in Piedmont, Calif., then ignited.

Who was Krysta Michelle Tsukahara ?

Krysta Michelle Tsukahara was a sophomore at Savannah College of Art and Design. She reportedly survived the initial crash and was conscious, but could not exit the truck after it lost power and the electronic door release failed, the lawsuit filed by her parents, Carl and Noelle Tsukahara, says, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

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Who were the other victims?

The driver, Soren Dixon, 19, and passenger Jack Nelson, 20, also died in the crash. A fourth passenger, Jordan Miller, escaped after a bystander broke the windshield with a tree branch.

Tsukahara died from smoke inhalation

She died from smoke inhalation and burns when onlookers could not remove her and the other victims, the lawsuit adds. The suit seeks damages from Dixon’s estate and the vehicle’s owner.

The suit notes that Tesla doors run on a 12-volt battery, which can fail if the vehicle loses power, and that the manual interior door release is difficult to find.

“It’s just a horror story. Tesla knows that it’s happened and that it’s going to happen, and they are doing nothing but selling the car with a system that entraps people and doesn’t provide a way of extraction,” attorney Roger Dreyer told the Chronicle.

The lawsuit cites over 30 publicized issues with Tesla door systems and accuses the company of “conscious disregard” for safety, claiming it has known about the problem for years.

Tesla’s handleless door design, which opens at the push of a button, is described in the suit as prone to failure in crashes and “lacked a functional, accessible, and conspicuous manual door release mechanism [or] fail-safe.”

Tesla was added to the Tsukaharas’ lawsuit on Thursday but did not respond to requests for comment.

Jack Nelson’s parents, Todd and Stannye, filed a separate lawsuit against Tesla on Thursday. Both suits seek unspecified punitive damages.

All four victims had cocaine and other substances in their systems

All four victims had cocaine, alcohol, and other substances in their systems, and the California Highway Patrol cited impaired driving and speeding as factors.

Still, Dreyer said the Tsukaharas have a “very, very strong case” against Tesla. “They [Tesla] will want to blame Mr. Dixon, anybody but themselves. But this vehicle absolutely should not have entombed these individuals and my clients’ daughter. It’s our way of holding the wrongdoer accountable and correcting bad conduct,” he said.

The Cybertruck, launched in November 2023, has faced multiple recalls and falling sales. In September, Tesla came under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration after owners reported doors failing to open, with parents sometimes forced to break windows to free children.