Uber’s Volvo SUV vehicle, which was driving in autonomous mode but with a human operator in the driving seat, hit and killed a woman, Elaine Herzberg, while she was wheeling her bicycle across the street at night in Tempe in March 2018.

It is not known whether prosecutors are considering charges against the driver for the crash, which was the first fatality in the US involving a self-driving vehicle.

Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk, whose office in central Arizona was asked to review the investigation, said in a letter released on Tuesday that her office was returning the case back to prosecutors in Phoenix to determine whether to file criminal charges.

Polk said her office concluded that video of the crash likely did not accurately depict the collision and recommended that Tempe police seek more evidence.

Prosecutors’ decision not to pursue criminal charges removes one potential headache for the ride-hailing company as the company’s executives try to resolve a long list of federal investigations, lawsuits and other legal risks ahead of a hotly anticipated initial public offering this year.

The accident was also a blow to the entire autonomous vehicle industry and led other companies to temporarily halt their testing. Scrutiny has mounted on the nascent technology, which presents fatal risks but has minimal oversight from regulators.

Elaine Herzberg, 49, was pushing her bicycle across the street but not using an official crossing (‘jaywalking’) in the darkness when the crash occurred.

The driver, Rafaela Vasquez, told investigators that she did not use her mobile phone before the crash, but authorities had previously said records showed Vasquez was streaming the television show ‘The Voice’ on her phone and was looking downward in the moments before the crash.

Vasquez told police Ms Herzberg “came out of nowhere” and that she did not see her prior to the collision. Investigators concluded the crash could have been avoided had Vasquez not been distracted. The relatives of Ms Herzberg and Uber ulimtaely agreed a private settlement in March 2018, with the legal firm representing the Herzberg family describing the case as “resolved”.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released a preliminary report in May saying the autonomous driving system on Uber’s Volvo XC-90 SUV spotted Ms Herzberg before hitting her, but did not stop because the system used to automatically apply brakes in potentially dangerous situations had been disabled “to reduce the potential for erratic vehicle behaviour”.

Instead of the system, Uber relies on the human back-up driver to intervene.

The company suspended testing of its self-driving vehicles in Arizona, Pittsburgh, San Francisco and Toronto while regulators investigated the cause of the crash.

In December 2018, Uber resumed limited self-driving car testing in Pittsburgh, restricting the cars to a small loop they can drive around only in good weather. The company is now testing with two people in the front seat and more strictly monitors safety drivers. The company also said last year that it made improvements to the vehicles’ self-driving software.

Uber’s Volvo SUV vehicle, which was driving in autonomous mode but with a human operator in the driving seat, hit and killed a woman, Elaine Herzberg, while she was wheeling her bicycle across the street at night in Tempe in March 2018.

It is not known whether prosecutors are considering charges against the driver for the crash, which was the first fatality in the US involving a self-driving vehicle.

Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk, whose office in central Arizona was asked to review the investigation, said in a letter released on Tuesday that her office was returning the case back to prosecutors in Phoenix to determine whether to file criminal charges.

Polk said her office concluded that video of the crash likely did not accurately depict the collision and recommended that Tempe police seek more evidence.

Prosecutors’ decision not to pursue criminal charges removes one potential headache for the ride-hailing company as the company’s executives try to resolve a long list of federal investigations, lawsuits and other legal risks ahead of a hotly anticipated initial public offering this year.

The accident was also a blow to the entire autonomous vehicle industry and led other companies to temporarily halt their testing. Scrutiny has mounted on the nascent technology, which presents fatal risks but has minimal oversight from regulators.

Elaine Herzberg, 49, was pushing her bicycle across the street but not using an official crossing (‘jaywalking’) in the darkness when the crash occurred.

The driver, Rafaela Vasquez, told investigators that she did not use her mobile phone before the crash, but authorities had previously said records showed Vasquez was streaming the television show ‘The Voice’ on her phone and was looking downward in the moments before the crash.

Vasquez told police Ms Herzberg “came out of nowhere” and that she did not see her prior to the collision. Investigators concluded the crash could have been avoided had Vasquez not been distracted. The relatives of Ms Herzberg and Uber ulimtaely agreed a private settlement in March 2018, with the legal firm representing the Herzberg family describing the case as “resolved”.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released a preliminary report in May saying the autonomous driving system on Uber’s Volvo XC-90 SUV spotted Ms Herzberg before hitting her, but did not stop because the system used to automatically apply brakes in potentially dangerous situations had been disabled “to reduce the potential for erratic vehicle behaviour”.

Instead of the system, Uber relies on the human back-up driver to intervene.

The company suspended testing of its self-driving vehicles in Arizona, Pittsburgh, San Francisco and Toronto while regulators investigated the cause of the crash.

In December 2018, Uber resumed limited self-driving car testing in Pittsburgh, restricting the cars to a small loop they can drive around only in good weather. The company is now testing with two people in the front seat and more strictly monitors safety drivers. The company also said last year that it made improvements to the vehicles’ self-driving software.