Utah teen program tries to dodge forced labor claims

Three former students say they were forced to provide free labor at troubled teen treatment programs in Utah, but the facilities insist they were simply doing chores.(CN) — An attorney representing a Utah treatment program urged a federal judge Wednesday to dismiss human trafficking claims brought by three young women who were formerly enrolled in one of its troubled teen programs.The women, now in their 20s, accuse Wilderness Training & Consulting — also known as Family Help & Wellness — of physically abusing, neglecting and exploiting them for labor while they were enrolled at their facilities in Layton, Utah, between 2015 and 2020.The plaintiffs say they were denied basic privileges upon arrival at the treatment centers, Solstice RTC and Journey Home West, including limited access to food, clothing and hygiene as well as their ability to speak.As punishment for disobedience, the women claim they were relocated to a basement with a mattress where they would remain in isolation with the lights on for days at a time. They say they also endured other types of punishment, including being forced to exercise until physical exhaustion or sickness and different types of psychological abuse. The plaintiffs claim these punishments had no logical or therapeutic basis.Key to their lawsuit, the plaintiffs also say all girls were forced to provide free labor — under the threat of punishment — in violation of the federal Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act.However, attorney Christopher Droubay, of Spencer Fane LLP, representing the treatment centers, argued the women do not successfully argue any specific harms they suffered under that statute.“There are generalized allegations about the facilities engaging in this type of conduct, and then kind of a catchall paragraph that says that these plaintiffs underwent either these or similar things,” Droubay argued. “But it’s unclear to me exactly what these plaintiffs underwent and what they didn’t, because a lot of the allegations in the factual recitations speak with practices generally, rather than how those practices were applied to the particular plaintiffs in this case, which I think is a missing component of this.”In its motion to dismiss, Wilderness Training & Consulting says the plaintiffs stretch the trafficking act beyond recognition. The company argues it can’t be used to circumvent the statute of limitations in Utah.The women also failed to show how the forced labor claims provided economic value, the defendants say.But plaintiff attorney Gareth Purnell disputed this. He argued the more generalized claims were made to show that many of the punishments and threats occurred around the students, which led to the coercion of labor.“What we are arguing is that a lot of the labor that the plaintiffs were forced to perform did give an economic benefit to the defendants, even if it wasn’t through a direct selling of a product,” argued Purnell, of Griffin Purnell. “It wasn’t just cleaning, it wasn’t just prepping the facility, it was landscaping, it was the yard work, it was the deep cleans that would happen before the tours. All of that was performed by the plaintiffs, and therefore the defendants did not need to hire someone to do that work, and therefore, the defendants received an economic benefit from it.”Additionally, attempting to characterize whether the claims made by the women were forced labor or simply chores, as the defendants have done, is improper at this stage, Purnell argued.Senior U.S. District Judge Tena Campbell suggested that if the case moves forward, many of the questions about the abuse and the forced labor could be cleared up through discovery. Campbell, a Bill Clinton appointee, remained silent throughout much of the oral arguments.The plaintiffs in this case filed their lawsuit in December 2025. It is one of a handful of federal cases against Wilderness Training & Consulting over similar abuse claims.Although Wilderness Training & Consulting programs have faced shutdowns, Solstice RTC and Journey Home West are still open in Utah.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads