When Sacramento drug rehabs admit patients, they are 100% liable for their safety and security.
Patients who are allowed to harm themselves or fatally overdose while under the supervision of a rehab facility are not at fault.
Families can file lawsuits against a negligent facility operator, seek justice, and earn support for a difficult future.
To find out how to hold a negligent detox center or sober living home responsible for a tragic death, please get in touch with us to schedule a free case consultation with a real lawyer.
Does My Family Need a Lawyer to Sue a Rehab?
No, your family is empowered to file a claim against a negligent rehab on their own. However, if a patient is seriously injured or dies while in the care of a drug treatment center, and facility negligence contributed, a lawyer can be a very beneficial protection.
Central Valley facilities will have their own lawyers who will want to blame your loved one and limit what your family receives. They may reject your case outright. Your attorney fights back with the evidence collected through a full investigation.
A Sacramento rehab wrongful death lawyer also files your claims and battles the large parent corporations and organizations that operate faulty drug treatment centers. Your family can focus on mourning in peace and rebuilding their lives. Your lawyer also has a good chance of earning your family much more than they could earn by filing a claim themselves.
Finding Evidence of Rehab Negligence
We mentioned above that if a local drug rehab contributes to a loved one’s death, it’s a good indication you need to file a lawsuit.
But determining if a rehab is liable for an accident isn’t as hard as it seems. In fact, rehab clinics accept full control of patients, and that means they are responsible for any actions Substance Use Disorder sufferers are allowed to take.
A skilled attorney helps secure evidence that staff members failed your loved one, and more could definitely have been done:
- Gaining security records and surveillance video to show how drugs were allowed into the facility.
- Securing monitoring logs and bed check records showing how long your loved one was in distress before being found.
- Securing the results of an internal investigation showing mistakes in how a withdrawal complication or a fentanyl overdose was responded to.
- Employment records to show problems with understaffing, underqualified staff, and without proper background checks.
- Evidence from the facilities’ website and promotional materials showing the promises that were broken.
- Evidence that a facility was providing services it wasn’t licensed to offer.
See: An evidence checklist when taking on a negligent drug rehab.
What Drug Rehabs Are Licensed?
The California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) has the only power to license drug rehabs for operation in the state. They license certain facilities that offer an elevated level of care.
That can include these and other services:
- Detoxification,
- Individual and group therapy
- Educational sessions
- Recovery and treatment planning
- Incidental medical services
On the other hand, sober living homes or transitional housing usually serve patients who are coming out of licensed programs. They offer rooms and peer support to residents as they put detox behind them and try to reenter normal life.
These rehab homes usually aren’t required to carry licensing, but patients must not get their medical care and counseling off the house grounds.
The Bottomline. Licensed and non-licensed drug rehab providers around Sacramento County are both required to do everything possible to keep their patients safe. When they are negligent, families are able to file claims and seek justice.
See: How to check on what Sacramento rehabs are licensed.
Who Can Be Held Liable for a Drug Treatment Center Death?
The operators of a sober living home or a drug detox center can be business owners or the leaders of charitable organizations. The operators could be city or county officials.
An experienced lawyer helps families determine who is in charge and who bears vicarious blame for the actions of their employees.
Your claim may be filed against these owners and operators, and others:
- A parent company or corporation
- A healthcare network
- A real estate business
- An investment group
- A non-profit organization (perhaps a church or non-profit)
See: How Sacramento is one of the top places in the state for drug rehabs.
Sacramento Sober Living Home Municipal Ordinances
California protects sober living homes and their ability to operate in single-family neighborhoods. Health & Safety Code § 11834.25 (2025) gives operators the right to be treated as normal residential homes. They can open a recovery residence in Natomas or any other neighborhood.
SACRAMENTO
Sacramento does hold homes with seven or more residents to different standards. These homes would usually be restricted to business zones and multi-family neighborhoods.
The definition of a residential care facility is discussed in Sacramento’s Municipal Code.
SECTION 5. A. Section 17.108.190 “Residential care facility” means a state-licensed facility that provides primarily nonmedical resident services to seven or more individuals in need of personal assistance essential for sustaining the activities of daily living, or for the protection of the individual, excluding members of the resident family or persons employed as facility staff, on a 24-hour-a-day basis.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the deadline for filing a wrongful death rehab claim?
Families have up to two years to file a wrongful death claim. If a tragedy is the result of medical malpractice in a licensed home, families would have up to three years to take legal action.
Can a rehab center be responsible for hiring a staff member with a criminal background?
Yes, this is known as negligent hiring. It’s part of the duty of care facilities must show patients. Hiring safe staff members who have had background checks and their qualifications confirmed. A staff member with a criminal record who sold drugs to patients would leave the facility operators liable for any resulting injury or death.
What type of wrongful death benefits are available to families?
Families must demand support for funeral and burial expenses. They’ll need money to pay for leftover ambulance fees and hospital costs. A claim should provide support for the income a loved one may have supported the family with. Family members may also receive support for the care and guidance they’ve lost in the years that follow.
Contact Us if Your Loved One Was Hurt at a Drug Rehab Facility Anywhere in the Central Valley.
Sacramento Attorney Martin Gasparian offers a free, confidential consultation to victims and their families after injury or death at any area drug treatment clinic.
- Mr. Gasparian can help families gain support even if a local rehab business shut down after a tragic accident.
- Mr. Gasparian can help families who live in other states hold a negligent Central Valley rehab liable.
Call us today or fill out a free case review form to schedule a free, no-obligation meeting.
Remember, if your family needs a lawyer’s help, you don’t have to have any money to hire us.