California doctor acquitted after driving family off 90-meter cliff

A 45-year-old physician from California walked free from court after a judge dismissed three attempted murder charges against him. Dharmesh Patel had intentionally driven his Tesla off a 90-meter cliff with his wife and two young children inside.

California doctor acquitted after driving family off 90-meter cliff

A judge in the United States has dismissed all attempted murder charges against a 45-year-old physician who drove his vehicle off a cliff with his wife and two children inside. Dharmesh Patel walked out of court a free man, and his spouse has welcomed him back into the family home.

According to New York Post, the incident took place in January 2023 in Pacifica, San Mateo, California. Patel deliberately pressed the accelerator and sent his Tesla over the edge at a location known as Devil's Slide. The drop measured approximately 90 meters. Despite the vehicle being destroyed in the fall, all four occupants survived: Patel, his wife Neha, their 7-year-old daughter, and their 4-year-old son.

Following the crash, the doctor was arrested and prosecuted. He had already begun mental health treatment and a monitoring program before the trial commenced. During a 2024 hearing, his attorneys argued that he was suffering from severe depression at the time of the crash. Psychologists testified that he had experienced a psychotic episode.

Two doctors who gave statements in April 2024 said Patel was experiencing delusions and hearing voices. He believed his children had fallen victim to a human trafficking ring for sexual exploitation. These paranoid ideas may have been reinforced by the fentanyl crisis in the United States, the war in Ukraine, and his fears that his children could be abducted and sexually abused. Court testimony linked these fears to the case of Jeffrey Epstein, who was convicted of sexual crimes.

In May 2024, Neha Patel spoke publicly for the first time since the incident. In a video statement, she described the event as "a mental health episode that defied all understanding or control." She assured the judge that circumstances would be different if her husband were allowed to return home, stating: "We need him in our lives. We are not a family without him. The children cried and asked for him during these 2.5 years."

The judge carefully considered assessments from psychiatrists who reported that Patel was progressing exceptionally well in treatment and intended to continue his therapeutic program. After the acquittal was announced, the 45-year-old embraced his family and they left the courthouse together.

Source: Newsit.gr