Charges tossed against Pasadena doctor who drove family over cliff in psychotic break

The criminal case against a California doctor accused of intentionally driving his family off a 300-foot cliff in the Bay Area has been abruptly dismissed after a judge determined he had made sufficient progress in a court-ordered mental health treatment program.

Dharmesh Patel, 45, a Pasadena radiologist, had faced three counts of attempted murder after authorities alleged he deliberately drove his Tesla off Devil’s Slide in Pacifica, in San Mateo County, in January 2023, according to the Bay Area News Group.

A San Mateo County judge dismissed the charges after receiving reports from Patel’s doctors indicating he was doing well in the mental health diversion program he had been placed in, the outlet reported.

Patel’s wife, 41, and the couple’s two young children — a 7-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son — were inside the Tesla when it plunged roughly 300 feet down the cliff.

All four family members miraculously survived the crash.

During a 2024 hearing, Patel’s attorneys argued he was suffering from major depressive disorder at the time of the wreck, while psychologists testified he experienced a psychotic break.

Patel was reportedly experiencing hallucinations, hearing footsteps and believed his children had been sex trafficked, according to two doctors who testified at a hearing in April 2024.

The Pasadena radiologist’s delusions were allegedly provoked by the nation’s fentanyl crisis, the war in Ukraine and feared his children could be kidnapped and molested–which appeared to have been connected to Patel’s worries about accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.

Patel stood silently before San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Sharon K. Cho as she dismissed the three attempted murder charges, according to the Mercury News.

After the ruling, Patel embraced his wife in the courtroom gallery before the couple left the courthouse together.

With the charges dismissed, Patel will not face further prosecution and is expected to have his passport returned after it was confiscated by authorities.

During earlier court proceedings, Patel’s wife argued that “we’re not a family without him” as she pleaded for his release from jail and admission into the diversion program.

Neha Patel also told the court she “will not hesitate to seek help when needed” under a treatment plan that relied in part on family members to report any signs of further mental instability, the outlet reported.

Judge Cho said reports from Patel’s clinicians showed he was “doing very well” and noted that he plans to continue treatment.

San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe, who opposed Patel’s placement in the diversion program, blasted the decision to dismiss the case.

“He got the break of a lifetime,” Wagstaffe told Bay Area News Group.

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