CA - Tesla crash off cliff shocked rescuers, Dr. dad arrested for attempted murder of family, Devil’s Slide, Jan 2023

[Megnut]

This is incredibly sad. I don't think minor children should live with him, even if he was having an untreated episode of MI when he drove them off the cliff but he is now being treated.

And for sure then no women suffering post partum should be criminalized.

Who will protect the children????????

How is it not attempted vehicular homicide? There's still a debt to society, regardless, no?

 

[10ofRods]

I had no idea it could present so late. I thought it came on in the lower end of that. But perhaps my perception is off because my friend with schizophrenia was symptomatic very young (by age twelve) which I know is outside the norm, too.

MOO

Schizoaffective is a different disorder (different genes) than either Bipolar or Schizophrenia. It's confusing to researchers, as well. It could turn out that they all overlap in some part of the genome, but that's not known yet.

IMO

 

[azure]

I wish that I was surprised. The man is a menace to public safety. No, he should not just go home and have some counseling.

Wife of doctor who drove family off cliff in Tesla asks court to drop charges

Neha Patel spoke to court for first time, saying that she and her children need him at home

www.independent.co.uk

Indeed, and I'd say he's a much larger threat to his family. Under no circumstances should he be around the children he was trying to "protect"-by killing them-until he's had comprehensive and extended psychiatric care.

 

[Dre]

Indeed, and I'd say he's a much larger threat to his family. Under no circumstances should he be around the children he was trying to "protect"-by killing them-until he's had comprehensive and extended psychiatric care.

He shouldn’t get to see them at all until after they’re 18 and able to decide for themselves if their attempted murderer deserves their attention… moo

 

[mickey2942]

Indeed, and I'd say he's a much larger threat to his family. Under no circumstances should he be around the children he was trying to "protect"-by killing them-until he's had comprehensive and extended psychiatric care.

I can easily see a physician, manipulating in treatment, not unlike "Edmund Kemper", who convinced the staff at the correctional facility that he was "cured". After his release, he was a prolific serial killer.

Edmund Kemper - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

This is criminal, not psychiatric. He lived, so he developed a sob story. Don't buy it.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

He shouldn’t get to see them at all until after they’re 18 and able to decide for themselves if their attempted murderer deserves their attention… moo

Completely agree. Imagine the pressure they may already be under. The only way to heal psychologically would be to not have to keep seeing him.

 

[ifindedout]

Wife of doctor who drove family off cliff begs for his charges to drop

The wife of a California doctor who drove her and his kids off a cliff in a failed murder-suicide bid has begged prosecutors to drop the charges.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Patel's wife said his return will not only 'restore him back to himself, but it will restore the health and wellness of our entire family.'

Emphasizing the importance of the 'health and safety' of her family, she said that she 'will not hesitate to seek help when needed.'

'We need — we need him in our life,' Patel's wife added. 'We're not a family without him.'

I think there may be cultural factors in her wanting him to be let off lightly. MOO

 

[legalmomma]

I would think in a majority of criminal cases the defense could use this!

Dad who drove family off cliff gets mental health diversion program

Attorneys argued Dharmesh Patel suffered a mental health episode when he drove the family Tesla off the highway.

www.newsnationnow.com

(NewsNation) — A judge ruled Thursday that a California doctor who intentionally drove his family off a 300-foot cliff at “Devil’s Slide” should enter a Mental Health Diversion program in lieu of a criminal trial.

Defense attorneys argued Dharmesh Patel was suffering from a mental health episode when he drove the family Tesla off the highway in January 2023, crashing onto a rocky beach south of San Francisco. The radiologist, his wife and two young children survived. Patel was arrested and charged with three counts of attempted murder.

Family members, including his wife, didn’t want Patel to stand trial and had been hoping the judge would place him in mental health treatment instead. Prosecutors, however, had questioned Patel’s mental history, arguing the crash was an intentional act of attempted murder-suicide because he felt the world was caving in due to global issues such as war, the fentanyl crisis and child sex trafficking.

NewsNation local affiliate KRON writes a doctor testified Patel was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. During the trial, the defense team’s experts, Dr. James Armontrout and Dr. Mark Patterson diagnosed Patel with major depressive disorder, according to KRON.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

A judge ruled Thursday that a California doctor who intentionally drove his family off a 300-foot cliff at “Devil’s Slide” should enter a Mental Health Diversion program in lieu of a criminal trial.

Does this mean after he completes the program and is taking medication and stabilized, he will be free to go back to his family as husband and father?

Have we seen any similar cases?

 

[SouthAussie]

Does this mean after he completes the program and is taking medication and stabilized, he will be free to go back to his family as husband and father?

Have we seen any similar cases?

Quote:
You may be able to avoid criminal prosecution and jail time by doing a mental health diversion program if you qualify under California Penal Code 1001.36. Then if you complete treatment, your criminal charges will be dismissed.

In addition, your arrest record will be sealed for most purposes, and it will be as if the case never happened. Having a clean background check can greatly increase your professional, educational, financial, and residential opportunities.

Mental Health Diversion in California - How It Works

Penal Code 1001.36 sets forth California's mental health diversion program that allows you to receive treatment in lieu of criminal prosecution and jail.

www.shouselaw.com

 

[BeginnerSleuther]

Does this mean after he completes the program and is taking medication and stabilized, he will be free to go back to his family as husband and father?

Have we seen any similar cases?

Anytime someone is found not guilty by reason of insanity, this has the potential of happening.

 

[legalmomma]

Anytime someone is found not guilty by reason of insanity, this has the potential of happening.

Of course. But here, there will be no trial, no plea.

 

[Occam's Zebra]

I would argue that anyone who tries to kill their families and themselves is not mentally stable. Yet most of them are in prison.

 

[mickey2942]

I would think in a majority of criminal cases the defense could use this!

Dad who drove family off cliff gets mental health diversion program

Attorneys argued Dharmesh Patel suffered a mental health episode when he drove the family Tesla off the highway.

www.newsnationnow.com

(NewsNation) — A judge ruled Thursday that a California doctor who intentionally drove his family off a 300-foot cliff at “Devil’s Slide” should enter a Mental Health Diversion program in lieu of a criminal trial.

Defense attorneys argued Dharmesh Patel was suffering from a mental health episode when he drove the family Tesla off the highway in January 2023, crashing onto a rocky beach south of San Francisco. The radiologist, his wife and two young children survived. Patel was arrested and charged with three counts of attempted murder.

Family members, including his wife, didn’t want Patel to stand trial and had been hoping the judge would place him in mental health treatment instead. Prosecutors, however, had questioned Patel’s mental history, arguing the crash was an intentional act of attempted murder-suicide because he felt the world was caving in due to global issues such as war, the fentanyl crisis and child sex trafficking.

NewsNation local affiliate KRON writes a doctor testified Patel was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. During the trial, the defense team’s experts, Dr. James Armontrout and Dr. Mark Patterson diagnosed Patel with major depressive disorder, according to KRON.

Called it. This guy is a control freak. I would hazard a guess that his wife has probably been working outside the home, probably why his kids are being tended by his in laws, he didn't like it, threatened her, she didn't believe he would do it.

Of course, facts not in evidence.

 

[Shamrock1]

I would argue that anyone who tries to kill their families and themselves is not mentally stable. Yet most of them are in prison.

There’s a vast difference between “not mentally stable” and being so mentally ill that one didn’t know right from wrong. I don’t know if that’s specifically the case here but it’s akin to putting someone with high cholesterol and high blood pressure in the same physical health category as metastatic cancer. Both unhealthy but obviously vastly different. JMO.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

There’s a vast difference between “not mentally stable” and being so mentally ill that one didn’t know right from wrong. I don’t know if that’s specifically the case here but it’s akin to putting someone with high cholesterol and high blood pressure in the same physical health category as metastatic cancer. Both unhealthy but obviously vastly different. JMO.

Why would we think he didn't know right from wrong, though? He knew enough about reality to be driving a vehicle when this occurred. IMO he is very lucky to be receiving this "second chance."

 

[Knox]

(KRON) — A doctor who intentionally drove his entire family over a cliff at Devil’s Slide will not stand trial. All criminal charges filed against Dharmesh Patel were indefinitely suspended on Thursday.

Judge Susan Jakubowski ruled that the father of two is suitable for mental health diversion. Patel will soon walk free out of a San Mateo County jail and begin a court-ordered mental health treatment program administered by a Bay Area hospital.

Judge Jakubowski made her ruling following a three-day hearing in Mental Health Diversion Court. Prosecutors made a “very strenuous objection,” District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe told KRON4.

Defense attorney Joshua Bentley argued, “Not everyone who commits a crime is a criminal.” Bentley told the judge that Patel suffered a mental health crisis on the day of the crash, and he suffers from major depressive disorder.

The judge ultimately sided with Bentley and agreed that the proper diagnosis for Patel’s mental illness was major depressive disorder. “Weighing all factors, the court determined the defendant was suitable and granted the defense request for mental health diversion. Judge Jakubowski also ruled that the defendant will remain in the county jail for several weeks for what was called a ‘bridging period’ before release in the community,” the District Attorney’s Office wrote.

Once the doctor is released from jail, Patel will be ordered to wear a GPS monitor, reside at his parents’ home in Belmont, test twice weekly to show medication compliance, abstain from alcohol and drugs, and surrender his driver’s license and passport.

Patel will return to court on July 1.

https://www.kron4.com/news/bay-area/doctor-who-drove-family-over-cliff-will-not-stand-trial/

Hope we don't hear about this guy again a few years from now. Will he be on probation for an extended time after completing the treatment program?

 

[Shamrock1]

Why would we think he didn't know right from wrong, though? He knew enough about reality to be driving a vehicle when this occurred. IMO he is very lucky to be receiving this "second chance."

Speaking generally, it’s entirely possible for someone to know to drive while also being so mentally ill that one is incapable from knowing right from wrong. Look at Andrea Yates: she “knew enough about reality” to draw baths, etc. But she was so mentally ill that she was incapable of knowing right from wrong. JMO.

 

[mickey2942]

At least he is not living at his home with his children any longer. I hope that his drivers license was suspended.

 

[SophieRose]

Doctor to be reunited with family after driving them off cliff

Dharmesh Patel, 42, pleaded not guilty to the attempted murder of his wife Neha and their two children, aged 4 and 7, after driving them off a cliff in in San Mateo, California, and January 2.

www.dailymail.co.uk

She told San Mateo County Superior Court that Patel's major depressive disorder 'has the required nexus to the criminal conduct', after hearing from psychologists.

Patel must follow a strict two-year treatment plan by a team of psychologists led by James Armontrout, director of the Stanford Forensic Psychiatry Fellowship, to avoid criminal prosecution.

He and will stay in jail several more weeks as a 'bridging period' and then be released to live with his parents in Belmont.

Patel must stay under house arrest for two months except for treatment and court dates, and every move he makes will be tracked by an ankle monitor.

He must appear in court every week for progress reports and be tested twice a week 'to show medication compliance' with his treatment plan.

He will be banned form drinking alcohol or taking any drugs, must surrender his driver's license and passport, and cannot drive or possess weapons.