Mum-of-six who gave parenting advice on YouTube charged with child abuse
A mum-of-six who shared parenting advice through her YouTube channel has been charged with six counts of child abuse.
Ruby Franke, 41, who ran the popular YouTube account '8 Passengers', has been charged with six counts of felony child abuse by the Washington County Attorney in Utah. It comes after she and business partner, Jodi Hildebrandt, were arrested last week after Franke's 12-year-old son escaped Hildebrandt's home through a window and ran to a neighbour for help, according to a probable cause affidavit obtained by NBC.
The young boy was found emaciated, with open wounds and duct tape on his wrists and ankles. According to the affidavit, Franke and husband Kevin Franke's 10-year-old daughter was also found at Hildebrandt's home in a similar malnourished condition.
YouTuber mum Ruby Franke has been charged with six counts of felony child abuseThe children were in such a severe condition that they were transported to a local hospital, said officials. Franke's four other children have been taken into the care of Utah's Division of Child and Family Services.
Hildebrandt has also been charged with six counts of felony child abuse in Washington County, Utah. Each count carries a sentence of up to 15 years and a $10,000 fine.
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In a statement to NBC News, the county attorney said: "There are two juvenile victims in these cases, and each defendant is accused of causing or permitting serious physical injury to the victims in three different ways: (1) a combination of multiple physical injuries or torture, (2) starvation or malnutrition that jeopardises life, and (3) causing severe emotional harm."
Devout Mormon blogger Franke frequently collaborated on parenting and relationship advice videos with Hildebrandt for her life coaching service, ConneXions. However, the life coaching service has been criticised for its extreme teachings, which includes rejecting children who do not abide by their beliefs.
Franke shared parenting advice on YouTube, though her methods were controversial to say the least (8 Passengers/Youtube)ConneXions says it's a mental health curriculum and counselling service, structured around the principles of "impeccable honesty, rigorous personal responsibility and vulnerable humility". ConneXions' YouTube page was taken down following the news of the women's arrests.
Franke's oldest child has said she's "glad justice has been served". Franke came under fire in July after footage resurfaced of her appearing to allow her daughter to go hungry after she forgot to make her own lunch for school.
In the now-removed video, posted in February 2020, Franke appears to explain she had received a text from her daughter's teacher, saying the young girl had nothing to eat for lunch. However, Franke's response was reportedly less-than-sympathetic.
She said all her children were responsible for preparing their own lunches each morning, including her six-year-old daughter, and refused to take lunch into the school. She claimed she was "teaching her a lesson" by allowing her to go hungry for the day.
Concerned viewers of Franke's channel, which has been taken down, called child protective services after her son said he had been sleeping on a bean bag for seven months. Franke reportedly took away his bed as a form of punishment.
Several other videos show Franke threatening to take away meals from her children as a form of punishment. There are also videos of Franke threatening to cut the head off her child's teddy bear, taking away Christmas presents and sending one of her sons to a behavioural camp where young people spend a minimum of 49 days in the wilderness with little gear.
Franke's channel, launched in 2015, had 2.2 million followers as she and her husband Kevin documented their day-to-day life raising six children. However, the pair stopped posting videos in January 2022 and the channel was removed earlier this year. Months later, the mum said she decided to stop uploading videos because she wanted to "save her kids".
Franke and Hildebrandt are still in custody as of September 6, according to the Washington County Sheriff's Office's website. The pair are due to next appear in court on September 8.
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