Chicago Justice Actress Lindsey Pearlman Has Been Found Dead At 43 After Being Reported Missing

General Hospital Lindsey Pearlman screenshot
(Image credit: ABC)

Actress Lindsey Pearlman, known for her work on Chicago Justice and General Hospital, has been found dead in Los Angeles after reportedly being last seen on February 13. She was 43-years-old at the time of her death. Her death was reported by the LAPD and confirmed by family members on February 18. 

The Los Angeles Police Department reported that officers in the Hollywood area were called over the radio for a death investigation around 8:30 a.m. PT on February 18, and the L.A. County Coroner’s Office has confirmed that Lindsey Pearlman was found dead. At the time of writing, the cause of death has not yet been determined by the coroner. 

News of Lindsey Pearlman’s death comes two days after the LAPD Missing Persons Unit began seeking public assistance in the effort to find the actress on February 16, with a post on the unit’s Twitter account providing information about Pearlman and how to contact authorities. 

The public report from the LAPD stated that she was last seen on February 13 around 12 p.m. PT, although her husband, Vance Smith, later posted on Instagram that the date was incorrect and she was last seen on February 15 at 9 p.m. PT. Smith confirmed the news of his wife’s death on Instagram as well with a message and request:

The police found Lindsey. She’s gone. I’m broken. I will share more later, but I wanted to thank you to everyone for their love and efforts and ask you to respect the privacy of her family at this time.

A native of Chicago, Lindsey Pearlman appeared in many popular shows and even franchises over the years of her career, beginning with a role on Fox’s Empire. She then recurred in several episodes of Chicago Justice, as part of the successful One Chicago TV universe. Notably, she appeared in multiple episodes of long-running soap opera General Hospital, had a role in Netflix’s Selena: The Series, played a part in USA's The Purge TV show, and most recently appeared in several episodes of The Ms. Pat Show and Vicious

Savannah Pearlman, Lindsey Pearlman’s cousin who also did her part to spread the word and recruit public help in the search, shared on Twitter that she “was a fierce animal advocate” as well as talented actress, and asked that people “please consider a donation” to the volunteer-run Santé D’Or Foundation animal adoption center in Los Angeles in her honor. 

Our thoughts here at CinemaBlend go out to the family, friends, and loved ones of Lindsey Pearlman in this difficult time, and hope that well-wishers respect the request of the family for privacy while mourning. She was an accomplished actress with credits on popular projects, and the messages from her family as well as comments from others make it quite clear that she leaves a legacy among her loved ones. 

Laura Hurley
Senior Content Producer

Laura turned a lifelong love of television into a valid reason to write and think about TV on a daily basis. She's not a doctor, lawyer, or detective, but watches a lot of them in primetime. CinemaBlend's resident expert and interviewer for One Chicago, the galaxy far, far away, and a variety of other primetime television. Will not time travel and can cite multiple TV shows to explain why. She does, however, want to believe that she can sneak references to The X-Files into daily conversation (and author bios).