Ruby Franke: Parenting advice YouTuber given maximum sentence for child abuse
A woman from Utah who became popular on YouTube for her severe parenting advice has received a prison sentence ranging from four to sixty years.
42-year-old Ruby Franke has already admitted to charges of mistreating and starving her kids.
On Tuesday, she showed up in court with her ex-colleague Jodi Hildebrandt, aged 54. Both of them got the same punishment.
The magistrate ordered them to undergo four stints of imprisonment ranging from one to 15 years.
The blog section will be written in plain English using alternative vocabulary: The statements will follow one another and are the highest permissible by Utah legislation. The length of time each person will ultimately spend in prison will be decided by the official board in charge of granting conditional release.
During the trial, Eric Clarke, who works as a prosecutor in Utah, claimed that Franke had kept two of her kids in an environment that resembled a concentration camp. He also stated that Franke posed a considerable danger to society.
According to Mr. Clarke, the kids were constantly deprived of meals, drinks, comfortable bedding, and almost any kind of amusement.
During the court proceedings, Franke expressed remorse to her kids and explained that she was in a confused state where she couldn't distinguish between what was good and bad, and what was dark and light.
She expressed that she had been convinced that the world was a corrupt place, where police hold power, hospitals bring harm, government institutions manipulate, religious leaders deceive and desire, spouses fail to safeguard and children require mistreatment.
In August 2023, two females were apprehended due to an incident involving Franke's undernourished 12-year-old child. The child managed to escape from Hildebrandt's house in Ivins, Utah by climbing out of a window. Upon reaching the neighbour's abode, the child requested food and water since they were hungry and thirsty. Law enforcement discovered that the child had rope marks on their body from being bound to ropes, as indicated by official records.
The YouTube channel ConneXions was responsible for providing the image used in this blog post.
Franke and Hildebrandt have made joint appearances in videos uploaded to YouTube.
The detentions symbolized the conclusion of a protracted and disputed tenure on YouTube. Franke accumulated over two million followers for her channel 8 Passengers, which originated in 2015.
The time for parenting vloggers was abundant, and she informed a nearby news source that recording videos with her family allowed her to "remain in the moment and appreciate the children".
In her video content, she presented a familiar household structure of a Mormon family residing in the suburbs, educating their children at home, preparing meals together, enjoying food and having conversations as a unit.
In 2020, fans began to question the situation when one of her children revealed that he had been compelled to rest on a bean bag for a period of seven months.
People who watch YouTube videos carefully looked through Franke's previous videos and found out about some other unsettling and problematic techniques she uses. They noticed that she doesn't give food as a sanction, she intimidates her toy stuffed animal by pretending to decapitate it, and she punishes her children by taking away their Christmas celebration.
In this blogging segment, we will discuss a specific topic using different terms. The picture given is taken from 8 Passengers.
The Franke's, consisting of Ruby, Kevin, and their six offspring, were captured in a photo during the year 2018.
One person created a petition asking for an inquiry, and it received thousands of signatures. Utah's child protection agency was notified, but no legal action was taken. Despite this, Franke and her husband initially ignored the criticism and claimed that certain parts of their videos were misinterpreted.
However, the network's popularity dwindled, leading to its removal in 2022, which coincided with Franke's separation from her husband.
Franke started featuring in YouTube videos that were uploaded by Ms Hildebrandt. Ms Hildebrandt is a therapist and personal coach who manages ConneXions Classroom website.
When not in front of the camera, Franke's offspring were experiencing even more severe mistreatment.
According to police records, these actions involved restraining, hitting, and assaulting the individuals. They were also deprived of food and made to work outside during the summer without protection from the sun, leading to severe sunburn.
Hildebrandt confessed in a plea agreement that she either inflicted torture on the children or had knowledge of the abuse. She also admitted to compelling one of Franke's daughters to repeatedly leap onto a cactus.
Franke informed her offspring that they were wicked and under demonic possession and required to atone for their sins.
Before the hearing, Kevin Franke requested through his attorney that the highest possible penalty be given and referred to the maltreatment his kids received as "appalling and cruel".
Video creator Ruby Franke has expressed her "deepest remorse" after admitting her wrongdoing.
