The wife of the California radiologist accused of intentionally driving his Tesla off a 330-foot cliff with her and their two young children inside earlier this year told authorities that he "did it on purpose," according to newly declassified documents.
Dr. Dharmesh Patel, 41, was charged with three counts of attempted murder, accused of driving down the Pacific Coast Highway and over a cliff at Devil's Slide in San Mateo County on Jan. 2. He pleaded not guilty in February.
Miraculously, no one was hurt. The young children were 7 and 4 at the time.
The case documents declassified on Wednesday show that Patel's wife told authorities on several occasions that he intentionally drove off the cliff.
She told a paramedic who was helping to extract the family from the crushed vehicle that Patel "had intentionally driven off the side of the roadway," according to the document. "She repeated this several times."
The court documents indicated that Patel was beside her and conscious but "not saying anything unless spoken to."
A second paramedic on the scene said that Patel's wife was very concerned about the safety of her children. She told that paramedic that "the accused drove the vehicle off the cliff on purpose and was trying to kill them all," according to the documents. "She said this approximately three times," the paramedic added.
Patel's wife also told a California Highway Patrol officer: "He drove off. He's depressed. He's a doctor. He said he was going to drive off the cliff. He did it on purpose."
The highway patrol also interviewed witnesses who saw the Tesla before it went over the cliff.
Two witnesses reported that the Tesla "accelerated" as it approached the cliff's edge, and none of the witnesses said that the driver attempted to brake before going over, according to the documents.
A nearby surveillance camera also captured the moment that the Tesla went off the cliff. It showed the Tesla travelling within the bounds of the road, slowing down, and then turning right towards the cliff.
"The Tesla then makes a gradual turn to the right, plummeting over the cliff. There are no indications of any attempts to brake or steer the Tesla in any other direction," the document stated.
The declassified documents also reveal what Patel said about the accident.
When he was questioned in the hospital, he "claimed that he had stopped to check the tire pressure, as the Tesla was indicating low tire pressure that morning," the documents stated.
San Mateo County prosecutor Steve Wagstaffe said on Thursday that "we don't believe Mr. Patel's statement is consistent with the facts."
The declassified filings also showed that when investigators asked Patel whether he was depressed, he responded "not really." But he said that he felt sad about "the war, drugs, and crazy things."
The document notes that agents spoke with Patel's family. His sister said that she had talked to Patel the night before and remembered that he was "sad about the war and other things that are happening in the news." He was worried about "his children's future because of everything going on in the world," according to the documents.
Responding authorities were stunned to find survivors in the severely damaged vehicle.
Cal Fire officials said that it was incredibly "rare" for anyone to survive such a steep fall. An expert described the family's survival as "miraculous, given the severity of the impact."
The white Tesla Model Y was visibly crushed on all sides after plunging from Devil's Slide, about 20 miles south of San Francisco, on the morning of Jan. 2.
The car flipped and landed on its wheels. Firefighters had to rappel down to the site, rescue the family, and call for helicopters to hoist them to safety.
The declassified documents indicated that Patel's wife was hospitalized in critical condition and remained in the hospital for over a month before being transferred to an outside treatment facility.
Her daughter suffered a hand fracture and her son had a wound to the back of his head, according to the documents. Once released from care, the children were placed under the care of the accused's sister.
Patel is scheduled to appear in court on June 12 for a preliminary hearing. Two of the three attempted murder charges include special allegations of domestic violence and intent to cause great bodily injury.
In February, Patel's lawyer Joshua Bentley told a judge that Patel's wife did not want him prosecuted, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
Wagstaffe said on Thursday that Patel's wife spoke to law enforcement after the crash and that "the next occasion she can discuss the matter will be at the preliminary hearing."
Emails and calls to Patel's attorney went unanswered on Thursday. No one answered the phone number registered to Patel's name on Thursday.
Originally posted at Abogados de Accidentes
