New Delhi: Over three years after an Indian-origin radiologist drove his Tesla car, carrying his family, off a cliff in Northern California, a US court has dropped all charges against him. Dharmesh Patel was accused of trying to kill his wife and two children, and underwent a two-year mental health diversion programme after the crash.
“Defendant Patel completed the two years of mental health diversion and thus under the California law, Judge Cho had no discretion,” San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe told People. “She had to dismiss the charges; it was not a choice she made to dismiss or not dismiss the charges. My prosecutor did not object for the same reason.”
The incident took place on 2 January 2023 when Patel, 45, along with his 41-year-old wife Neha and two children, aged 7 and 4, was driving a Tesla car on the Pacific Coast Highway in San Mateo County, California. The vehicle went down a 250-foot cliff in an area known as Devil’s Slide and crashed on a rocky beach. While the car was left completely mangled, all four survived the crash, local reports had said.
After the crash, Dharmesh Patel faced three counts of attempted murder. His wife told first responders that he “purposely drove off” the cliff and that he was depressed. Tesla’s self-driving features were also not found to be “a contributing factor” by investigators. However, Patel pleaded not guilty and had blamed tire issues in his Tesla car for the mishap, even when witnesses said that the car did not appear to be stopping.
Also read: 31% of Indians paused dating this summer—it was too hot for romance
The trial
Two doctors, during court proceedings in 2024, testified that Patel experienced a psychotic episode during the crash. He believed that his two children might be pushed into sex trafficking, a Los Angeles Times report said.
Patel was also diagnosed with major depressive disorder by multiple psychologists.
In 2024, a US judge had ruled that Patel would undergo treatment and not stand trial in the court due to his mental health issues. He subsequently qualified for the two-year mental health diversion programme as per California law, reported CNN.
The radiologist, who had to surrender his medical license, along with his driving licence and passport, was jailed for about a year, before getting released in 2024 to complete the programme.
Patel’s qualification for the mental health programme was opposed by prosecutors, who said that attempted murder should not be eligible for it.
“In our view, if a defendant intentionally decided that he wanted to kill another human being and tried to do so, they should not be able to avoid accountability and avoid justice,” Wagstaffe told People. “But that is not the law, and Mr. Patel was entitled to the dismissal.”
(Edited by Aamaan Alam Khan)