Wife Says Pasadena Doctor Husband Intentionally Plunged Car Off Cliff

A Pasadena doctor accused of driving his family off a Northern California cliff may have done so on purpose,  according to court documents obtained by the San Francisco Chronicle.

Patel Patel pleaded not guilty in February to three counts of attempted murder and two enhancements related to the grave injuries suffered by his wife and 7-year-old daughter.

According to an article in the Chronicle, Pasadena resident Dharmesh Patel, 41, said the sensor on his Tesla indicated it had low tire pressure as he was driving his wife and two children on Pacific Coast Highway on Jan. 2 according to documents unsealed on Wednesday. 

Patel said he was trying to stop to check the tires when the car tumbled off a cliff overlooking the ocean.

The article, which quotes court documents, his wife Neha disputed his account,  “He’s depressed. He’s a doctor. He said he was going to drive off the cliff. He purposely drove off.”

According to CHP Officer Aaron Sapien wrote while being rescued from the car, Neha told an emergency worker, “something to the effect that the driver, her husband Dharmesh Patel, did it on purpose. …

Patel sustained “serious lower body injuries” and was hospitalized under guard for several weeks before he recovered enough to be booked into jail on Jan. 20.

His wife and their daughter were also seriously injured, while their son suffered minor injuries.

Patel told investigators he and his family were on their way to Montara, where his brother lived when he stopped to check tires. His wife was “irritated” shortly before the crash because she didn’t want to stop by his brother’s house before returning home to Pasadena.

Witnesses said the Tesla didn’t show signs of slowing down before it plummeted off the cliff and the police report also does not indicate a malfunction.

Police obtained surveillance video that corroborated the witnesses’ accounts.