he didn't do anything really illegal...i'm sure the vehicles meet the minimum required to avoid fines and/or legal action, but that doesn't mean they're even close to optimal, or really safe, just safe on paper, which is enough to absolve muck of legal liability.
Electric motors are torquey, and provide very quick take offs. Most people are not used to that, nor are they used to being able to reach 60 in 2 or 3 seconds. They would be much better off with much better brakes, but as far as legality goes, i can't see everyone at tesla knowingly releasing a vehicle that doesn't meet the minimum required specs.