Del Amo Behavioral Health System, a 166-bed psychiatric hospital in Torrance owned by Universal Health Services, is the defendant in several active lawsuits, including a multi-plaintiff abuse case filed in late 2025, a pending suit over the sexual assault of a 13-year-old patient, and a nurse’s wrongful-termination action now in arbitration. The hospital has also paid a state fine for a reporting failure and settled a federal employment-exclusion allegation in the past three years, and it was the defendant in a Ninth Circuit service-dog case that ended in dismissal in November 2025.
The 2025 Multi-Plaintiff Abuse Case
On November 26, 2025, a group of plaintiffs proceeding under pseudonyms filed John O.W. Roe, et al. vs. Del Amo Hospital, Inc. dba Del Amo Behavioral Health System in Los Angeles County Superior Court, case number 25TRCV04051. The “et al.” caption signals multiple plaintiffs whose identities are being protected on the docket. The matter is actively litigated at the Inglewood courthouse, with discovery motions, a case management conference, a motion to quash service, and a demurrer with a motion to strike on the calendar in July 2026.1Los Angeles County Superior Court. Case 25TRCV04051 Calendar
The 2021 Sexual Assault of a 13-Year-Old Patient
A separate civil case filed on November 14, 2022 in Los Angeles County Superior Court (case number 22TRCV00776) alleges that on June 16, 2021, a 13-year-old female patient was sexually assaulted by two male patients in a restroom at the facility. According to the complaint, staff allowed the girl to use a boys’ bathroom despite her mother’s warnings. The suit alleges Del Amo did not perform a rape kit or medical evaluation, did not tell the mother about the assault until two days later, and did not report the incident to the California Department of Public Health or law enforcement. The case remains ongoing, and Del Amo has sought to strike references to the facility’s past incidents from the proceedings.2Kayla Survivors. Del Amo Behavioral Health System Investigation
Nurse’s Wrongful Termination Suit
In December 2024, Rodolfo Lara, a nurse employed at Del Amo since January 2002, sued both Del Amo Hospital, Inc. and Universal Health Services, alleging California Labor Code violations, retaliation, wrongful termination, and defamation across seven causes of action. In April 2025, the court granted the defendants’ motion to compel arbitration after finding Lara had signed an alternative dispute resolution agreement and did not opt out in time. Universal Health Services was dismissed with prejudice in May 2025. The claims against Del Amo continue in arbitration, with a status conference set for July 2026.3UniCourt. Lara v. Del Amo Hospital
The Service Dog ADA Case
A federal disability-rights lawsuit filed in 2018 by a patient identified as C.L. accused Del Amo of violating the Americans with Disabilities Act and California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act by refusing to allow her service dog, Aspen, to accompany her during voluntary inpatient stays at the hospital’s National Treatment Center between 2015 and 2017. C.L. had been diagnosed with complex PTSD and dissociative identity disorder.4FindLaw. C.L. v. Del Amo Hospital Inc.
After a July 2019 bench trial, the district court ruled for Del Amo, concluding that Aspen was not a service dog because C.L. had never completed formal certification. The Ninth Circuit vacated that ruling in March 2021, holding that the ADA does not require certification and that self-training is a valid path.4FindLaw. C.L. v. Del Amo Hospital Inc. On remand, the district court granted C.L. a permanent injunction. Del Amo then closed the National Treatment Center for economic reasons after the death of the program’s lead physician. In November 2025, the Ninth Circuit found the case moot, ruled the closure genuine rather than an attempt to evade litigation, and ordered dismissal.5Justia. C.L. v. Del Amo Hospital, Inc., No. 24-3345
Recent Fines and Federal Settlement
On December 31, 2025, the California Department of Public Health fined Del Amo $47,250 for failing to promptly report a 2023 cafeteria assault in which two patients beat an adolescent boy unconscious, breaking his shoulder. State law requires hospitals to notify health officials of any adverse event or unusual occurrence threatening patient safety. The staff member assigned to monitor the area was responsible for twice as many patients as required and tried to shield the victim with her body during the attack. A hospital official reportedly told investigators “kids fight all the time.”6San Francisco Chronicle. Psychiatric Hospital Health California7San Francisco Chronicle. California Psychiatric Hospitals Crisis
State records also show that in 2023 the California Department of Public Health found Del Amo had repeatedly assigned a single nurse to nearly 40 patients at a time, with staff explicitly warning management that the shortages were “affecting patient safety.” Administrators told the state they did not consistently report assaults to regulators because doing so “would be reporting all the time.”7San Francisco Chronicle. California Psychiatric Hospitals Crisis8The Capitol Forum. Universal Health Services Problematic Hospital
Older enforcement history includes a 2017 state finding that Del Amo failed to report a minor’s allegation of sexual assault by another patient, and a 2014 “Immediate Jeopardy” citation issued after a wrongful death.9Phillips Law. Del Amo Behavioral Health Sexual Abuse Lawsuit
At the federal level, Del Amo paid $28,907 in March 2023 to settle allegations that it violated the Civil Monetary Penalties Law by employing a person it knew or should have known was excluded from federal health care programs. The conduct came to light because Del Amo self-disclosed to the HHS Office of Inspector General under a Corporate Integrity Agreement governing its parent company.10HHS Office of Inspector General. Del Amo Behavioral Health System Agreed to Pay $28,000
The UHS Corporate Integrity Agreement
The Corporate Integrity Agreement covering Del Amo took effect in July 2020 as part of a $122 million settlement between Universal Health Services and the U.S. Department of Justice. The DOJ had alleged that UHS facilities improperly admitted patients who did not need inpatient care, failed to discharge patients when care was no longer necessary, used improper physical and chemical restraints, and submitted false claims to Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, and other federal programs. The settlement resolved 18 whistleblower lawsuits.11U.S. Department of Justice. Universal Health Services Inc. and Related Entities Pay $122 Million
The five-year agreement ran through March 2026 and required UHS to retain an independent monitor, conduct annual claims reviews, implement quality-of-care dashboards, and adopt policies covering medical necessity, involuntary commitment, restraint and seclusion, and staffing levels.12HHS Office of Inspector General. Corporate Integrity Agreement – Universal Health Services
Verdicts Against the Parent Company
Del Amo itself has not been the subject of a large jury verdict in the file, but its parent company faced two in 2024 totaling $895 million before post-trial reductions. A jury awarded $360 million against Cumberland Hospital for Children and Adolescents over alleged sexual abuse of minors by a physician, with roughly 40 additional plaintiffs awaiting trial. A separate jury returned $535 million against Pavilion Behavioral Health System in Illinois after finding the facility negligent for allowing a minor patient to sexually assault another; a judge later reduced that award to $180 million.13Modern Healthcare. UHS Lawsuit Verdict Pavilion Behavioral Health System UHS has said it is appealing and pursuing post-trial motions on both awards, and has acknowledged that if the judgments stand, combined exposure could exceed its remaining insurance coverage by more than $555 million.14Healthcare Dive. UHS Damages Child Sexual Abuse Pavilion