(NewsNation) — A California doctor who intentionally pushed a family off a 300-foot cliff known as “Devil’s Slide” should enter a mental health diversion program instead of a criminal trial, a judge ruled Thursday.
The defense argued that Dharmesh Patel was suffering from a mental illness when he drove his family’s Tesla off a highway and crashed into a rocky beach south of San Francisco in January 2023. Patel, a radiologist, his wife and two young children survived. Patel was arrested and charged with three counts of attempted murder.
His family, including his wife, did not want Patel to stand trial and wanted the judge to have him undergo psychiatric treatment instead, but prosecutors questioned his mental history and argued that the crash was a deliberate attempted murder-suicide caused by a man who felt the world was falling apart because of global problems such as war, the fentanyl crisis and child sex trafficking.
Local NewsNation affiliate KRON reports that a doctor testified that Patel was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. During the trial, defense experts Dr. James Armontrout and Dr. Mark Patterson diagnosed Patel with severe depression, according to KRON.
In sentencing, the judge noted Patel wanted to continue her psychiatric treatment and noted she had a strong support system around her.
If Patel successfully completes a two-year mental health program, prosecutors will be forced to drop the charges against him, but he will remain in custody until at least his next court hearing on July 1. After his release, he has been ordered to remain at his parents’ home in San Mateo County.
