Utah Just Revoked the License of the Boarding School Where Paris Hilton Says Staff Beat Her and Locked Her in Solitary as a Teen
Paris Hilton spent almost a year inside Provo Canyon School in the late 1990s. She says staff fed her unknown pills, watched her shower, and locked her in solitary without clothes. Now the state has confirmed what she and other survivors said for decades.
Provo Canyon School has to shut down every service at its Springville campus by August 6, after Utah pulled its license for failing “to provide applicable health and safety services for clients.”
The citations go back to 2025: staff didn’t keep proper staff-to-client ratios, used an unnecessary restraint and aggressive physical contact on a client, neglected care, and skipped background checks on applicants. In May, state officials imposed temporary restrictions after learning staff didn’t get immediate medical care for a student with serious injuries. The school has 15 days to request a hearing.
Hilton, 45, has said staff beat her, fed her unknown pills, watched her shower, and locked her in solitary confinement without clothing during her nearly year there. She’s testified in Congress and state legislatures across the country, helping pass laws to protect teens in Utah and 15 other states.
“For more than fifty years, children came forward with stories of abuse, neglect, and trauma,” she said in a statement Tuesday. “I was one of those children. I know what it feels like to cry for help and believe no one is coming. Today, children still inside that facility know someone is finally coming to protect them.”
The school is under new ownership, and its administration says it can’t comment on anything before the change, including Hilton’s time there.
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