Dharmesh Arvind Patel will no longer face attempted murder charges

A California radiologist accused by prosecutors of intentionally driving his Tesla off a 250-foot cliff with his family inside the vehicle is no longer facing criminal charges after completing a two-year mental health diversion program, according to multiple reports.

Dharmesh Arvind Patel had been charged with three counts of attempted murder in connection with the January 2023 crash that injured his 41-year-old wife Neha Patel and their children, a 7-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy, PEOPLE previously reported.

The crash occurred on a notorious stretch of highway known as the Devil’s Slide in San Mateo County, near Pacifica, along the famous Highway 1, which runs the length of California’s coastline.

Now, Patel, 45, will no longer stand trial after successfully completing the diversion program, according to reports from the Associated Press, KTLA and the New York Times. KTLA also reported that his passport has been returned to him and a no harassment order for his family has been lifted.

“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 said in a statement to PEOPLE on Tuesday, July 7. “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.”

Wagstaffe said the outcome reflects what he calls a flaw in California’s mental health diversion law, not the prosecution of the case.

“There are certain crimes that are not eligible for mental health diversion such as murder, rape or other sexual assault, child molestation and human trafficking, but our Legislature has twice refused the request of the California DA’s Association to include attempted murder on the list of excluded crime (including once this summer),” he said.

“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 added. “But that is not the law, and Mr. Patel was entitled to the dismissal.”

During court proceedings in 2024, two doctors testified that Patel had been experiencing a psychotic episode at the time of the crash that led him to believe his two children might be victims of sex trafficking, the Los Angeles Times previously reported. The defense claimed he also suffered from major depressive order.

While prosecutors argued Patel would not benefit from the mental health diversion program and sought to keep the case in criminal court, a judge found that his diagnosis had contributed to his behavior, the New York Times reported.

At the time of the crash, the California Highway Patrol said that “investigators developed probable cause to believe this incident was an intentional act” after speaking to witnesses and putting together evidence at the scene.

Neha allegedly told paramedics after they had plunged down the cliff that her husband “intentionally tried to kill us,” Wagstaffe previously told PEOPLE in 2023. He claimed multiple people heard her make that comment.

But during a court hearing at which Patel pleaded not guilty, Neha said through her husband’s defense attorney, Josh Bentley, that she did not want her husband to be prosecuted, KNTV previously reported.

Patel, a radiologist from Pasadena, has since surrendered his medical license, the Medical Board of California confirmed to the AP.

Source: https://people.com/charges-dropped-against-calif-doctor-who-drove-tesla-off-cliff-family-inside-12014198