Indian-Origin Radiologist Dr. Dharmesh Patel Tesla Cliff Crash Case: US Court Dismisses Attempted Murder Charges After Mental Health Diversion

Key Points:

• California judge Sharon Cho dismissed three attempted murder charges against radiologist Dr. Dharmesh Patel on July 6, 2026.

• Patel completed a two-year court-approved mental health diversion programme, leading to the dismissal.

• Prosecutors alleged Patel intentionally drove his family’s Tesla off a roughly 250-foot cliff near Devil’s Slide on January 2, 2023.

• Patel, his wife and two children survived the crash, though Patel, his wife and one child suffered serious injuries.

• The court sealed the case and returned Patel’s passport; Patel had also surrendered his California medical licence in December 2025.

A California judge has dismissed three attempted murder charges against radiologist Dr. Dharmesh Patel, more than three years after he drove a Tesla carrying his wife and two young children off a cliff along the Northern California coast.

San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Sharon Cho dismissed the charges on Monday, July 6, 2026, after Patel completed a two-year mental health diversion program, according to recent US media reports citing San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe.

The court also ordered the case sealed and returned Patel’s passport.

Patel, 45, of Pasadena, California, had faced three counts of attempted murder following the January 2, 2023, crash near Devil’s Slide in San Mateo County. Prosecutors alleged that he intentionally drove the vehicle off the cliff in an attempt to kill his family. Patel had pleaded not guilty.

The dismissal followed his completion of court-approved mental health treatment rather than a criminal trial. Wagstaffe, whose office had opposed Patel’s placement in diversion, said the judge was required by law to dismiss the charges once Patel successfully completed the programme.

Under California's mental health diversion law, once an eligible defendant successfully completes the court-approved treatment programme, the court must dismiss the criminal charges. Prosecutors cannot continue pursuing the case solely because they disagree with the diversion outcome.

On January 2, 2023, Patel was driving a 2021 Tesla Model Y south on Highway 1 with his wife and their two children, who were 4 and 7 years old at the time, when the vehicle plunged approximately 250 feet down a cliff near Devil’s Slide, a coastal stretch near Pacifica.

All four family members survived. An official described their survival as an “absolute miracle.”

The crash nevertheless caused serious injuries. Recent reporting states that Patel, his wife and one of their children suffered serious injuries.

The family’s survival drew national and international attention as emergency crews carried out a difficult rescue operation at the base of the cliff.

Patel was charged after investigators concluded that the crash was not accidental.

According to reporting on the case, Patel’s wife told authorities after the crash that her husband had intentionally driven off the cliff. Her statements became an important part of the investigation into whether the plunge had been deliberate.

The San Francisco Chronicle also reported that Patel initially attributed the crash to tyre-pressure problems with the Tesla. Prosecutors, however, alleged that he intentionally drove off Highway 1.

The allegation of intent remained the prosecution’s position. The case did not proceed to a criminal trial because Patel was later admitted to California’s mental health diversion process and the charges were ultimately dismissed after he completed treatment.

Also see: German Palliative Care Doctor Admits Killing 12 Patients During Berlin Murder Trial

Patel’s mental condition became a central issue in the court proceedings.

In 2024, a judge approved Patel for mental health diversion after his defence argued that he had been experiencing severe psychiatric symptoms at the time of the crash.

Recent Associated Press reporting described the defence position as episodic major depression with hallucinations. Separately, reporting on the court proceedings said defence experts diagnosed Patel with major depressive disorder with psychotic features.

Because these descriptions come from different reports and testimony, they should be understood as attributed accounts of the psychiatric evidence presented in the case rather than a single independently established diagnosis.

According to the Associated Press, Patel told a psychiatrist after his arrest that he was depressed and had delusions that kidnappers would traffic his children.

Prosecutors opposed diversion and challenged aspects of the defence’s psychiatric case. The court nevertheless found Patel eligible for treatment under California’s mental health diversion framework.

Patel remained jailed without bail until his release in 2024 to participate in an outpatient mental health treatment programme.

According to Associated Press reporting, the two-year programme involved treatment with a Stanford University psychiatrist and a family therapist.

After his release from jail, Patel lived with his parents in San Mateo County and was monitored through a GPS bracelet. He was also required to surrender his driver’s licence and passport and check in with the court weekly.

The Associated Press reported that Patel’s wife and children also moved to the San Francisco Bay Area and that the court later allowed him to spend time with his family.

Patel’s wife supported his treatment and opposed his prosecution. She testified that she had forgiven her husband, that their children missed their father and that they wanted him home.

The dismissal came after Patel completed the full two-year diversion programme.

District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said Judge Sharon Cho was required under the law to dismiss the charges after Patel successfully fulfilled the treatment requirements.

Wagstaffe’s office had unsuccessfully opposed diversion for Patel. Despite the dismissal, the district attorney continued to criticise the scope of California’s mental health diversion law and argued that attempted murder should not qualify for such treatment-based resolution.

Wagstaffe said prosecutors intend to continue working with California lawmakers to narrow eligibility for the diversion law so that attempted murder cases would no longer qualify in the future.

According to the Associated Press, Wagstaffe and other California district attorneys have sought legislative changes that would exclude attempted murder from eligibility for mental health diversion.

The distinction is important: the charges were not dismissed because a jury found Patel innocent or because prosecutors withdrew their allegation that the crash was intentional. They were dismissed after he completed the court-approved mental health diversion programme.

Also see: Maui Doctor Attempted Murder Trial: Wife Describes Brutal Cliffside Attack During Birthday Hike in Hawaii

Following the dismissal, Patel reportedly walked toward the courtroom gallery, where his wife was waiting.

The Mercury News reported that the couple then left the building together.

The moment followed years of legal proceedings in which Patel’s wife had repeatedly supported treatment and family reunification.

Patel’s medical career was also affected by the case.

Months after his arrest, the Medical Board of California barred him from practising medicine while he faced the attempted murder charges.

According to the Medical Board of California, Patel surrendered his California medical licence in December 2025 after previously being barred from practising medicine while the criminal case remained pending.

According to the Associated Press, the Medical Board said on Tuesday, July 7, 2026, that Patel had surrendered his California medical licence in December.

This is the clearest currently verified formulation and avoids conflating the date of any earlier agreement or regulatory filing with the effective surrender of the licence.

Before the case, Patel worked as a radiologist in Southern California.

The dismissal ends the criminal case against Patel more than three years after the Devil’s Slide crash.

Prosecutors charged him with three counts of attempted murder and alleged that the crash was intentional. His mental health later became central to the proceedings, and in 2024 a judge approved him for a two-year diversion programme.

After Patel completed that programme, Judge Sharon Cho dismissed the charges on July 6, 2026, ordered the case sealed and returned his passport.

(Rh/ARC/MSM)