The Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act is Signed Into Law
December 24, 2024 marked a monumental day for every individual once enrolled in a facility designed to reform at-risk youth as President Joseph R. Biden signed into law the Stop Institutionalized Child Abuse Act.
With support from legislators in Washington and heightened awareness courtesy of celebrity champion and “troubled teen” program survivor Paris Hilton, the Stop Institutionalized Child Abuse Act ensures greater federal oversight of a network of privately-run youth programs, therapeutic boarding schools, residential treatment centers, wellness programs, and religious academies that promise therapeutic and wellness-based support for youth experiencing behavioral or mental health challenges.
Kelly Guagenty, partner at Justice Law Collaborative, shared the following about the passage of the new law:
“The passage of the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act is a monumental step toward accountability and healing for survivors of institutional abuse, particularly sexual abuse survivors. We are incredibly proud of the survivors who have worked tirelessly to make this bill a reality. Their courage and dedication in sharing their stories and advocating for change have been instrumental in this victory.
From a trauma-informed perspective, this bill acknowledges the deep, lasting harm caused by institutions meant to protect children. It validates survivors' experiences and opens a path to justice, allowing their voices to finally be heard.
However, the true success of this bill will depend on how it’s implemented. We must ensure there are safe, accessible spaces for survivors to come forward without fear of re-traumatization, offering legal support, mental health services, and peer support. This bill is a crucial milestone, but it must be part of an ongoing effort to dismantle harmful systems and support the healing of all those affected by institutional abuse.”
In recent years, survivors of these programs have come forward in droves to share deeply troubling stories of unspeakable abuses and trauma suffered at the hands of unqualified adults employed by these institutions. Because of minimal or completely absent state and federal regulation, so-called “troubled teen” programs have operated ‘out of reach’ as stories of abuse surfaced.
Through live protests, podcast interviews, and a series of televised documentaries including Teen Torture Inc., Hell Camp: Teen Nightmare, and The Program: Cons, Cults and Kidnapping, survivors have aggressively recounted deeply traumatic stories, spotlighting the absolute need for greater oversight.
Justice Law Collaborative, which has filed several “troubled teen” program lawsuits, believes legislation was a necessary first step to reform.
“We are grateful to President Biden, Paris Hilton, and the legislators who agreed that stronger protection was paramount,” said Kim Dougherty, JLC co-founder and troubled teen industry lawyer. “We hope that both federal and state regulators and licensures will heed this new bill and execute greater supervision of and checks on these institutionalized programs and the youth enrolled in their care.”
Dougherty has been consistently interviewed by media about the troubled teen industry, most recently by the investigative reporters at WLOS-13, which has closely followed the evolution of Trails and the devastating fall-out connected to these institutions. Within the last year, a 12-year-old boy was found dead in a sleeping bag at the now-closed Trails Carolina wilderness therapy facility. He had suffocated to death. An autopsy later ruled his death a homicide.
Further, in his final weeks as North Carolina’s Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kody Kinsley stated that he believed wilderness therapy camps should be permanently outlawed in the state, calling for an outright ban.
“I don't think wilderness therapy camps have a place in our continuum of care in North Carolina," Kinsley said. "The law needs to be changed to permanently remove these licenses, so they don't exist."
The brave survivors of “troubled teen” programs include Paris Hilton who has lobbied tirelessly over the last several years, openly testifying about the abuses she suffered at a boarding school in Utah where the then 17-year-old was sent for 11 months. In her testimony, she reported mental and physical abuse, recounting how staff members would beat her, force her to take unknown pills, watch her shower, and place her in solitary confinement without clothes as punishment. She shared that the treatment was so traumatizing that she suffered nightmares and insomnia for years. “This moment is proof that our voices matter, that speaking out can spark change, and that no child should ever endure the horrors of abuse in silence. I did this for the younger version of myself and the youth who were senselessly taken from us by the Troubled Teen industry.”
Survivors not only have rights, but they now have ways to amplify their voices and personal stories, including through legal action. The trauma-informed team at Justice Law Collaborative is available to help.