Celebrity Paris Hilton says she is now on a mission to reform the troubled teen industry.
Paris Hilton creates petition to shut down Provo Canyon School
This story was produced as part of a larger project by Jessica Miller, a participant in the 2019 Data Fellowship. It focuses on the troubled rehabilitation industry in Utah, where youth residential treatment centers are abundant but lack adequate oversight.
Also in this series:
Paris Hilton says she was abused while at Utah facility for ‘troubled teens’
Part 2: Provo Canyon School’s history of abuse accusations spans decades, far beyond Paris Hilton
Paris Hilton leads rally against Provo Canyon School
Why we raised money to get reports on Utah’s ‘troubled teen’ treatment centers
Part 3: Utah faces criticism for its light oversight of ‘troubled teen’ treatment centers
Part 4: Former students at Utah troubled-teen centers say their reports of sex abuse were ignored
Utah inspectors find no problems in ‘troubled-teen’ facilities 98% of the time
Increased oversight is coming to Utah’s ‘troubled-teen’ industry
A girl, her hands zip tied, was forced to sit in a horse trough at a Utah ‘troubled-teen’ center
Utah officials want your help as they draft new rules for the ‘troubled-teen’ industry
(Courtesy Change.org)
Her first target: Provo Canyon School, the Utah facility she attended in the 1990s where she says she was physically and emotionally abused.
Hilton recalled in the documentary that she felt the staff enjoyed hurting children or seeing them naked as they showered. She said she and others were often overmedicated.
“I didn’t know what they were giving me,” she said. “I would just feel so tired and numb. Some people in that place were just gone. The lights were on, but no one was home.”
The film also documents Hilton reuniting with several of her old classmates, which included them being photographed with a sign that reads “Provo Canyon School” and a number of long-term issues they say they endured as a result of how they were treated at the facility.
Universal Health Services, which has owned Provo Canyon School since 2000, has tried to distance itself from Hilton’s accusations, saying it didn’t own the school at the time she was there.
But people who were residents at Provo Canyon School in recent years have made similar accusations. There is a pattern of controversy and allegations of abuse that stretches from the 1980s to today at one of Utah’s largest youth residential treatment centers.
“Provo Canyon School has faced persistent allegations of abuse and mistreatment since its founding,” Hilton said. “It is time we demand accountability. Provo along with the countless other facilities aren’t going to be able to get away with this anymore. And if the entire industry doesn’t entirely restructure to provide their youth with safety and true support, Provo will just be the first domino to fall.”