What is Provo Canyon School?
Provo Canyon School (PCS) is a long-running residential treatment facility for youth in Utah, founded in 1971. Over time it expanded to multiple campuses and today markets itself as a psychiatric/behavioral treatment program for adolescents. Public records and reporting note that PCS has been owned and operated by Universal Health Services (UHS) since 2000. Survivors from across the country have described harrowing experiences at youth residential programs—ranging from physical and emotional abuse to sexual assault. Provo Canyon School in Utah has been a focal point of those allegations, particularly after Paris Hilton publicly shared her story.
PCS says it promotes “best practices” for youth behavioral health on its website, but independent investigations over many years have documented troubling controversies about restraint, isolation, overmedication, and alleged abuse. Numerous lawsuits seeking monetary damages on behalf of affected survivors have been filed and successfully resolved. Sexner Injury Lawyers LLC is currently representing survivors of Provo Canyon as well as abuse victims of other facilities. Over $40,000,000 has already been recovered for clients of the firm. Their sexual abuse legal team can be reached at (312) 243-9922 any time of day or night for free information.
What Does Paris Hilton Say Happened to Her While There?
Paris Hilton has repeatedly described abuse she says she endured as a teen at PCS, including being forcibly medicated, violently restrained, subjected to invasive “exams” at night without a physician present, sexually abused by staff and placed in isolation. She testified about these experiences before Congress as part of a national push to reform the “troubled teen industry” and has also detailed similar allegations in interviews and in her documentary This Is Paris. Her advocacy has helped propel federal reform legislation addressing abuse in youth residential facilities and to increase oversight of youth residential facilities.
What Do Other Survivors Allege Happened to Them While There?
Survivor accounts describe a pattern that spans decades, including improper use of physical restraints, seclusion, overmedication, and staff misconduct at PCS. Allegations of weak state oversight persist even after serious incidents, and survivor marches in 2020 drew broader attention to PCS alumni demands for accountability. Earlier litigation dating back to the late 1970s also challenged conditions at the school.
Is Sexual Abuse Common at Residential Treatment Facilities?
While comprehensive national prevalence statistics for sexual abuse in youth residential programs are difficult to pin down (due to underreporting and inconsistent oversight), federal watchdogs have documented thousands of abuse allegations occurring in residential programs for youth across the country over many decades:
- A 2024 U.S. Senate Finance Committee issued a report called “Warehouses of Neglect,” concluding that systemic abuse and unsafe conditions persist in residential treatment facilities nationwide. This report documented systemic neglect and abuse across youth residential treatment programs and called for sweeping reforms and oversight.
- Ongoing national reporting has catalogued widespread allegations (and confirmed cases) of sexual abuse, dangerous restraints, and underqualified staff at facilities across the country. In 2005 alone, 33 states reported over 1600 staff-involved abuse incidents. These findings align with the ongoing wave of survivor accounts and litigation against various facilities and systems nationwide
In addition to contacting Sexner Injury Lawyers LLC, survivors can also contact RAINN (the national sexual assault hotline and resource network) for confidential emotional support.
Have Survivors Successfully Recovered Monetary Damages for Sexual Abuse and Assault?
Yes. Survivors have brought and won cases—or obtained significant settlements—against youth facilities and related agencies. Examples include:
- Devereux Advanced Behavioral Health (Georgia) — $60 million jury verdict for the sexual assault of a 15-year-old resident.
- Glen Mills Schools (Pennsylvania) — $3 million settlement fund: Former students alleging systemic abuse secured a $3,000,000 settlement from an education agency involved in oversight; those funds to be distributed to eligible former students.
- Mesabi Academy (Minnesota) — $1.495 million settlement with the private operator for families of youths after claims involving unsafe and abusive conditions at the now-closed facility.
- Spring Ridge Academy (Arizona) — $2.5 million verdict for fraud and misrepresentation related to program practices.
- Trinity Teen Solutions (Wyoming) — $2.3 million class settlement approved in 2025 in a case alleging forced labor and mistreatment of girls; the Justice Department filed an amicus brief on class-certification issues earlier.
- Los Angeles County juvenile facilities (California) —$4 billion global settlement in 2025 to resolve thousands of sexual-abuse claims in youth detention and foster care settings.
- Youth Development Center (New Hampshire) — $10 million individual settlement: The state agreed to pay $10,000,000 to Michael Gilpatrick, who alleged repeated sexual assaults by staff while detained in the 1990s—four times the fund’s maximum administrative award.
These examples show that survivors can and do obtain compensation through litigation or settlement funds—even when the abuse occurred years earlier.
Are There Time Limitations That I Need to be Aware of?
What is a Statute of Limitations?
Almost every potential case has some time limitation in which a lawsuit must be properly filed in the right court within a certain date to avoid forever losing the right to sue. Most sexual abuse cases have these time limitations (called a statute of limitations or SOL), but they vary greatly from state to state and often depend on how old the victim was at the time of the abuse or assault.
Many States, such as Illinois, Maine, Nevada, Maryland, and Vermont have recently expanded the time period allowed or eliminated it entirely. But it’s extremely important to immediately determine what Statute or Limitation applies to your case, because if it expires, you’ll lose your right to sue - forever. Call us today and we’ll help you determine what date applies to your situation.
Other Time Dependent Considerations
- Move fast to protect evidence. We secure records (facility logs, staffing and incident reports, medication charts), surveillance video, and witness statements before they’re lost or destroyed.
- Pursue all responsible parties. We investigate claims against facilities and any liable operators or contractors—across settings such as mental health treatment facilities, juvenile detention centers, hospitals, doctors’ offices, nursing homes, psychiatric facilities, dental offices, surgical centers, physical therapy clinics, outpatient treatment centers, and prisons—wherever misconduct or negligent supervision enabled abuse exists.
- Build trauma-informed cases. We collaborate with medical, psychological, and institutional-standards experts to document the full scope of harm: PTSD, medical bills, therapy costs, lost opportunities, and long-term damages.
- Seek accountability and compensation. Our team has recovered millions of dollars for clients and is currently representing survivors of sexual abuse at Provo Canyon as well as survivors from other facilities.
Seeking Accountability and Compensation for Survivors Since 1990
At Sexner Injury Lawyers LLC, we represent survivors of sexual abuse and assault in civil actions seeking accountability and compensation for our clients. Our team has handled, and is currently handling, cases against a wide range of settings where abuse can occur, including:
- Residential treatment and mental-health facilities
- Juvenile detention centers, juvenile facilities and youth programs
- DCFS placements in foster homes
- Hospitals, doctors’ offices, psychiatric facilities, and surgical centers
- People in the music and entertainment industries
- Clergy and religious institutions
- Nursing homes and long-term care facilities
- Schools and teacher sexual abuse
- Dental offices, physical therapy/chiropractor clinics, and treatment centers
- Places of employment including sexual abuse by supervisors
- Prisons and correctional institutions
Survivors deserve safety, validation, and justice. Our firm represents survivors of sexual abuse in institutional settings nationwide—including Provo Canyon School and other residential treatment facilities. We have the experience, resources, and sensitivity to handle these complex cases.
How Can the Sexual Abuse Legal Team at Sexner Injury Lawyers LLC Help?
We know how to move quickly to preserve evidence, obtain records, identify systemic failures (such as negligent hiring, supervision, or training), and pursue all responsible parties and insurers.
- Free, confidential consultations — 24/7.
- No fee unless we win.
- Trauma-informed, survivor-centered advocacy.
If you or someone you love was abused at Provo Canyon School or any youth residential facility, contact Sexner Injury Lawyers LLC anytime to discuss your legal options in complete confidence.
Our attorneys can assess potential claims for negligence, negligent supervision, institutional liability, intentional torts, and—where appropriate—claims under federal statutes such as the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA). We can also coordinate with law enforcement to pursue criminal charges if requested and connect clients with trusted support resources if desired.
We work on a contingency basis which means no fees are ever charged unless we are successful --so no worries there. If you or a loved one suffered abuse at Provo Canyon School or any residential treatment facility, contact Sexner Injury Lawyers LLC at (312) 243-9922 any time, day or night.
