Paris Hilton is calling Utah’s action against Provo Canyon School a long-awaited victory after years of speaking publicly about what she says happened to her there as a teenager.
PEOPLE reported that the Utah Department of Health and Human Services revoked the license for the Springville campus of Provo Canyon School, the residential treatment facility where Hilton has said she was abused as a teen.
The state’s order took effect July 6. Under the revocation notice, the campus cannot accept new enrollments and must end services by Aug. 6.
Hilton said the decision confirmed what survivors had been saying for decades. She told PEOPLE that the part of her that was told she would never be believed feels “so validated” now.
Utah Revoked the School’s License After Health and Safety Violations
The Associated Press reported that Utah cited multiple noncompliance issues dating back to 2025. The citations included staff-to-client ratio failures, unnecessary restraint, aggressive physical contact with a client, neglecting care and problems with employee information or background checks.
State officials also said temporary restrictions were imposed in May after staff allegedly failed to seek immediate medical care for a student with serious injuries.
Deseret News reported that the school has 15 days to request an administrative hearing. If the license revocation stands, the facility cannot apply for a new license for five years.
Paris Hilton Says Survivors Were Telling the Truth
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Hilton said in her statement that children had come forward for more than 50 years with stories of abuse, neglect and trauma. She said the state had confirmed what survivors knew: “Provo Canyon School failed the children in its care.”
“I was one of those children,” Hilton said. She added that children still inside the facility now know someone is coming to protect them.
Hilton also posted about the decision on Instagram, calling it the news she had been fighting and praying for. She thanked survivors and advocates who pushed for attention on the facility and the wider troubled teen industry.
The School Said It Disagrees With the State’s Decision
The revocation applies to the Springville campus. Deseret News reported that Provo Canyon School’s Provo campus has a separate license that currently has conditions placed on it.
Tim Marshall, executive director of Provo Canyon School, told Deseret News that the school disagrees with the decision and is evaluating legal and administrative options, including an appeal.
Marshall said the school is limited in what it can say while the matter is ongoing, but said its priority remains providing safe, high-quality care and support for adolescents and families.
Hilton First Spoke Publicly About Provo Canyon School in 2020
Hilton first detailed her allegations against Provo Canyon School in the 2020 YouTube Originals documentary This Is Paris. She told PEOPLE at the time that she spent 11 months at the school after being sent there by her parents as a teenager.
She alleged that staff verbally and physically abused students, placed her in solitary confinement and monitored communication with her parents. Four former classmates also appeared in the documentary and made similar allegations about their own experiences.
Provo Canyon School previously told PEOPLE that it could not comment on operations or patient experiences before August 2000, when the school was sold by its previous ownership. The school later said it does not condone or promote abuse and reports alleged or suspected abuse to state regulators, law enforcement and child protective services.
Her Advocacy Went Beyond One School
Hilton has testified before Congress and state legislatures about youth residential treatment programs. AP reported that she helped push laws intended to protect teens in Utah and 15 other states.
PEOPLE reported that the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act passed the U.S. Senate in December 2024 after years of advocacy from Hilton and other survivors. Hilton has continued pressing for greater oversight of residential treatment facilities since coming forward publicly.