A doctor is facing attempted murder and child abuse charges after “deliberately” driving his Tesla off a cliff with his family.
Dharmesh Patel arrested after arrest rescued from wrecked vehicle At the bottom of a notoriously dangerous cliff near San Francisco known as the Devil’s Slide.
His 41-year-old wife, seven-year-old daughter and four-year-old son were also in the car and survived the 300-foot (91-meter) fall.
On Wednesday, Patel was said to be in stable condition at the hospital and will be sent to the San Mateo County Jail in Redwood City, California, upon his release.
Initial reports suggested the Tesla may have been in full self-driving mode at the time of the crash, but police believe the crash was the “deliberate act” of the 41-year-old radiologist.
Police worked for three hours on Monday to rescue children with minor injuries.
A helicopter was then used to hoist the more seriously injured adults from the damaged car.
“The children were properly secured in the proper car seats and the car seats were properly secured in the vehicle,” said Brian Pottenger, battalion commander for the San Mateo-Santa Cruz detachment.
“In our opinion, the car seat saved the lives of those two children.”
The Tesla that Patel was driving was driving on a major portion of the road before turning off the cliff, he continued, adding that similar incidents are common in the area.
The hospital where Patel works said it was “deeply saddened” by the accident but also “very grateful” that the injuries were not worse.