Whereas investigators have famous that the Tesla concerned within the harrowing however miraculous crash at Satan’s Slide earlier this month is being probed for potential points which will have brought about the accident, an announcement from one of many survivors, feedback from motorists within the space, and video proof has pinned the incident on the automobile’s driver.
Through the incident, a Tesla Mannequin Y with a household of 4 — Radiologist Dharmesh Patel, his spouse, Neha, and their two kids — drove off Satan’s Slide in California. The all-electric automobile dropped 250 toes earlier than touchdown on its wheels on a dry portion of the seaside. Rescuers who responded to the incident dubbed the survival of all of the automobile’s occupants a “miracle” since different motorists who fell in the identical space weren’t as fortunate to flee with their lives.
As famous in a San Francisco Chronicle report, statements from the Mannequin Y driver’s spouse, feedback from motorists driving within the space the place the incident occurred, and movies from the Tom Lantos Tunnel close by have recommended that the incident was intentional.
San Mateo County District Lawyer Steve Wagstaffe famous that three counts of tried homicide fees had been filed towards Patel. Charging paperwork included enhancements for home violence and actions that brought about nice bodily accidents. “We do imagine the proof establishes the mandatory intent to kill,” Wagstaffe stated.
The District Lawyer famous that after Neha was hoisted by helicopter from the location of the crash, she talked with paramedics and supplied incriminating statements about her husband. Motorists who have been within the space when the incident occurred additionally knowledgeable investigators that they noticed no brake lights on the Tesla when it made a tough proper and plunged off the cliff.
Wagstaffe, for his half, acknowledged that his workplace is at the moment investigating the potential causes behind the radiologist’s actions. “We’re wanting into what led as much as this. Was there melancholy or anything? It wasn’t simply that he was attempting to kill them. He was attempting to kill himself too,” the District Lawyer stated.
Whereas the investigation into the incident is ongoing, Wagstaffe famous that the Tesla Mannequin Y was not in self-driving mode on the time of the incident. No movies, nevertheless, have been recovered from the automobile. All 4 occupants have been additionally belted in when the Tesla drove off the cliff.
Dharmesh Patel appeared in courtroom on Monday afternoon, and his legal professional, Josh Bentley, requested for a delay till February 9. Choose Jeffrey Finigan granted Patel’s request, however he additionally granted the prosecution’s request that the Mannequin Y driver not be supplied bail to keep away from “potential hazard to relations.”
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