The “suicidal” California doctor accused of driving his Tesla with his family inside off a cliff allegedly suffered from “major depressive order” and experienced a “psychotic” break during the 2023 crash.
Dharmesh Patel, 43, was experiencing hallucinations, hearing footsteps and believed his children had been sex trafficked, two doctors testified at a hearing on Wednesday in Redwood City.
The Pasadena radiologist’s delusions were 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, psychologist Mark Patterson said according to the Orange County Register.
Wednesday’s hearing was a response to an earlier request from Patel who is seeking a mental health diversion in his case.
If a judge grants the doctor’s request, Patel would be placed on a two-year treatment plan instead of receiving jail time.
Patel’s charges would be dropped if he doesn’t commit any crimes during the proposed treatment plan.
If Patel is placed in the mental diversion program, James Armontrout, a Stanford psychiatric clinician, will oversee the treatment.
Patel’s potential treatment includes “extensive outpatient care involving group and individual therapy sessions, as well as meetings with himself and a psychotherapist,” according to the outlet.
The doctor was deemed a good candidate for the program because he’s at low risk of injuring anyone else and has shown progress with his treatment since the crash.
“I see him as someone who is very motivated and amenable to treatment,” psychologist Mark Patterson testified at the hearing.
Patterson said it was “clear to me he has a good capacity” to respond to treatment.
Patterson’s diagnosis of Patel came after a series of 18 tests were conducted and he spoke with the doctor and his siblings.
Patel was charged with three counts of attempted murder for the Jan. 2, 2023 crash where he drove the family’s car off a 250-foot cliff off “Devil’s Slide” on Highway 1 and landed on the shore of the Pacific Ocean.
Patel, his wife, Neha, and their children — a 7-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy at the time — miraculously survived.
The father of two has pleaded not guilty to the charges, claiming his Tesla Model Y was experiencing tire issues at the time of the crash.
Patel’s wife, Neha, however, had told investigators after the crash that her husband was suicidal and intentionally drove off the road
“He’s depressed. He’s a doctor. He said he was going to drive off the cliff. He purposefully drove off,” Neha told rescuers.
The Tesla was found to not have been in self-driving mode and witnesses claimed the vehicle did not indicate any signs of malfunction.
Prosecutors argued against the diversion program, claiming Patel was diagnosed with a different disorder, known as schizoaffective, and isn’t suffering from a major depressive disorder.
Schizoaffective is a chronic mental condition similar to schizophrenia.
The prosecutors have also argued the difficulty it would be to monitor Patel if the case leaves the court.
“If he goes off his medication, how do you know? It’s not like being on probation or on parole. It’s purely the visits with the psychiatrist,” Dist. Atty. Stephen Wagstaffe said to the court according to the LA Times.
Patel has remained in custody without bail at San Mateo County Jail.
