SAN JOSE, Calif. — A man accused of intentionally driving a Tesla carrying his family off a 250-foot seaside cliff last month pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges of attempted murder.
Dharmesh A. Patel stood quietly while facing the charges before a San Mateo County Superior Court judge during a brief hearing Thursday afternoon.
His hands shackled and wearing an orange jail jumpsuit, Patel spoke only once, to waive his right to a speedy trial. His preliminary hearing was set for March 20.
The judge also issued a full protective order, admonishing Patel to refrain from contact with his wife and children.
Patel, 41, a doctor from Pasadena, is accused of driving his Tesla — with his family on board — over a cliff on Highway 1 near Devil’s Slide on Jan. 2 in a bid to end their lives. In the passenger seat was his wife; in the back seat, his 7-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son.
That everyone survived was a “miracle,” first responders said after the wreck. Patel’s wife, Neha, remains hospitalized, a prosecutor said Thursday.
The couple’s 7-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son have been released from hospitals and are living with relatives in the San Francsico Bay Area.
Investigators have attempted to interview the wife as well as other family members to help determine why Patel wanted to kill himself and his family while they were visiting Bay Area relatives over the holidays, according to San Mateo County District Attorney Stephen Wagstaffe. But so far, investigators have been rebuffed in those efforts, Wagstaffe said shortly after Patel was charged.
Investigators said that the crash was believed to be an intentional act and not caused by the Tesla’s self-driving features.
One clue, however, came in video footage pulled from a camera perched atop the Tom Lantos Tunnel. The footage showed that after Patel exited the tunnel, he continued uphill, then made two right turns — one into a wide dirt shoulder, and another sharp swerve right over the cliff, Wagstaffe said after a previous hearing.
Neha Patel also was found by paramedics “screaming” about her husband’s “intentionality,” Wagstaffe added, though he declined to explain exactly what she said.
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