A Utah mother of six who gave parenting advice through the once-popular YouTube channel called “8 Passengers” pleaded guilty Monday to four felony counts of second-degree aggravated child abuse for abusing and starving two of their children.
Ruby Franke, dressed in gray and white prison clothing, pleaded guilty to each of the first three charges individually and said of the fourth: “With my deepest regret and pain for my family and my children, guilty.”
Judge John J. Walton accepted the plea deal and scheduled sentencing for February 20. The agreement leaves the sentence in the hands of the judge and does not rule out a prison sentence, acknowledged his lawyer, LaMar Winward.
Winward Law announced in a statement Friday that the alleged abuse occurred while Ruby Franke was influenced by a relationship counselor who led her to “a distorted sense of morality.”
“Ruby Franke is a devoted mother and also a woman committed to constant improvement,” Winward Law said in a statement. Franke initially believed Jodi Hildebrandt “had the insight to offer a path to continuous improvement,” but she said Hildebrandt “took this pursuit and turned it into something outrageous.”
Hildebrandt “systematically isolated Ruby Franke from her extended family, her adult children, and her husband, Kevin Franke,” the statement said.
Ruby Franke, dressed in gray and white prison clothing, pleaded guilty to each of the first three charges individually and said of the fourth: “With my deepest regret and pain for my family and my children, guilty.” AP Ruby Franke pleaded guilty to child abuse charges. AP
Franke and Hildebrandt were arrested on Aug. 30 after Franke’s 12-year-old son escaped from Hildebrandt’s home in the southern Utah town of Ivins and asked a neighbor to call the police, according to the 911 call released by the St. George Police Department.
The boy was emaciated and had duct tape around his ankles and wrists, but he did not say why, the caller reported.
“I think he’s been… he’s been detained,” the caller said, his voice breaking. “He’s obviously covered in wounds.”
Franke’s 10-year-old daughter was also found in Hildebrandt’s home, according to court records. Both children were taken to the hospital. Ultimately, Franke’s four youngest children were taken into state custody.
Kevin Franke has filed for divorce. Instagram/@moms_of_truth
Franke and Hildebrandt are each charged with six felony counts of aggravated child abuse. They have remained jailed since their arrest.
During Franke’s imprisonment, “she actively engaged in introspection that allowed her to reset her moral compass and understand the full weight of her actions. “Ms. Franke is committed to taking responsibility for the role she played in the events that led to her incarceration,” the statement said.
The 12-year-old boy told investigators that “Jodi” put the ropes on his ankles and wrists and that they used cayenne pepper and honey to bandage the wounds caused by the ropes, according to a search warrant.
Kevin Franke has filed for divorce.
Franke admitted to starving two of his children. true_moms/instagram
Hildebrandt agreed not to see patients until state licensing officials address the allegations. His next court hearing is scheduled for Dec. 27, according to court records. His attorney, Douglas Terry, did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment on the allegations made against Hildebrandt in Franke’s attorney’s statement.
The Franke family came under fire online for their “8 Passengers” vlog depicting parental decisions, including banning their eldest son from their room for seven months for playing a prank on his younger brother. In other videos, Ruby Franke talked about refusing to bring lunch to a kindergartner who forgot it at home and threatening to cut off the head of a girl’s stuffed toy to punish her for cutting things around the house.
In a video, Franke said she and her husband told their two youngest children that they would not receive gifts from Santa Claus one year because they had been selfish and did not respond to punishments such as staying home, not going to school and cleaning the tables. from the floor.
The YouTube channel, which started in 2015, ended after seven years.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn