Robert Carradine’s family sues UCLA for wrongful death after failing to remove actor’s belt in psychiatric unit

Robert Carradine’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the University of California, Los Angeles after employees allegedly failed to remove his belt while he was receiving care in a psychiatric unit.

“Robert walked into UCLA’s locked psychiatric unit ‘feeling relieved to be hospitalized’ and hoped that ‘additional inpatient treatment would’ reduce his anxiety,” the filing obtained by TheWrap Sunday read.

“He was happy to be in a ‘locked, structured environment’ where he could rest — one that felt ‘containing and helpful.’”

According to the filing, Carradine’s “hopes for successful treatment didn’t match the reality he had stepped into.”

“Instead of walking into a safe environment, he walked into a locked facility that broke a cardinal rule for a hospitalized psychiatric patient with active suicidal thoughts and a history of suicide attempts,” the documents stated, referring to how “UCLA let him walk into a locked psychiatric unit with a belt.

A belt can be used to “cause self-harm or hanging,” and the “Lizzie McGuire” alum’s family argued that it’s “standard” for belts to be removed when a patient checks into a psychiatric hospital.

The filing alleged that not only did UCLA fail to “confiscate his belt” but also “left a rolling bedside table in his room, which was not a standard piece of furniture in the locked psych unit.”

According to the documents, the late actor attempted to commit suicide 19 hours after he was admitted to the hospital.

Carradine “never regained consciousness” and “suffered an anoxic brain injury” that led him to spend “the next five weeks in the intensive care unit.”

The Disney alum died on Feb. 23, 2026. He was 71.

“None of this happened because UCLA lacked the knowledge, the policies or the means,” the document added. “It happened because UCLA took shortcuts with two safeguards that were meant to protect Robert’s life.”

Additionally, UCLA also allegedly failed to check in on Carradine “every 15 minutes,” and he was left alone for “long periods of time,” his family claimed.

Carradine’s family is seeking general, special and economic damanges, and additional wrongful damages.

The “Revenge of the Nerds” star suffered from Bipolar Disorder ahead of his death, along with severe depression and anxiety.

He is survived by his three kids: Ever, Marika and Ian.

If you or someone you care about is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).