The man who stabbed his wife twice last summer will not be sentenced to prison, a judge determined Thursday afternoon.

Navinkumar Patel, 46, of Shawnee, was arrested in late June 2015 after he stabbed his wife in the abdomen at Lawrence’s Super 8 Motel, 515 McDonald Drive, which he owns. He pleaded no contest to felony charges of attempted second-degree murder and criminal threat in March.

After Patel’s plea, Douglas County District Court Judge Robert Fairchild ordered him committed to Larned State Hospital for a mental health evaluation.

photo by: Richard Gwin

Thursday, Patel appeared in court to be sentenced. Fairchild sentenced him to probation, the terms of which have not yet been decided, however.

In court, the doctor who evaluated him, Bradley Grinage, testified that Patel suffers from bipolar disorder, an illness that was exacerbated by alcohol addiction.

If Patel stops drinking and continues to take his medication, Grinage said he is at a low risk for a repeat offense.

More than a dozen of Patel’s family members, including his wife, showed up in court Thursday to support him. Many wrote letters to Fairchild, asking him to sentence Patel to probation.

Patel’s attorney, John Kerns, called the case “unusual, to say the least.”

Kerns told Fairchild that in the Hindu culture of Patel’s family, his wife and children would also suffer if he were sentenced to prison. They would essentially be “ostracized,” he said.

Not only did Patel’s family vouch for his character, Kerns said, but they were also willing to ensure that he continues to remain sober and sticks to his medication regimen.

Two of Patel’s cousins addressed the court, saying that he is a loving husband and father and that his outburst was the first of its kind.

Fairchild directly questioned one cousin to make sure the family is up to the task of looking after Patel.

“I think it’s going to take a community to make his sobriety stick,” Fairchild said. “You cannot accept the fact that just because he’s clean now he’s going to stay that way.”

Fairchild agreed with Kerns that Patel’s case is unusual.

“The cultural part of it is very significant in this case,” he said, noting that he did not want a prison sentence for Patel to further harm his family.

Although Assistant District Attorney CJ Rieg argued that Patel’s conviction carries with it a presumptive prison sentence, Fairchild noted that the law allows him to depart from those guidelines with “substantial and compelling reason.”

Fairchild then sentenced Patel to serve probation, but ordered that he remain in jail until a proper plan is established to reduce the risk of a repeat offense.

“I want the recommendation of the office that’s going to be supervising him before I impose any conditions,” he said.

Patel is scheduled to next appear in court on Sept. 8 at 11 a.m., when Fairchild will announce the terms of his probation.