Attempted murder charges against a Californian doctor, accused of intentionally driving his family off a 300-foot cliff in the Bay Area, have been abruptly dismissed. A judge determined that Dharmesh Patel had made sufficient progress in a court-ordered mental health treatment programme.
Mr Patel, 45, a radiologist from Pasadena, had been facing three counts of attempted murder after authorities alleged he deliberately drove his Tesla off Devil’s Slide in Pacifica, San Mateo County, in January 2023, according to the Bay Area News Group.
A San Mateo County judge dismissed the charges following reports from Mr Patel’s doctors indicating his positive progress within the mental health diversion programme, the outlet reported.
Mr Patel’s 41-year-old wife and their two young children – a seven-year-old daughter and a four-year-old son – were inside the Tesla when it plunged approximately 300 feet down the cliff.
Remarkably, all four family members survived the crash.
During a 2024 hearing, Mr Patel’s legal team argued he was suffering from major depressive disorder at the time of the incident, while psychologists testified he experienced a psychotic break.
San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe, who had opposed Mr Patel’s placement in the diversion programme, criticised the decision to dismiss the case.
“He got the break of a lifetime,” Mr Wagstaffe told the Bay Area News Group.
