Salt Lake City — Ruby Franke, a mother of six from Utah, who previously shared parenting advice on a popular YouTube channel, issued a tearful apology to her children for both physical and emotional abuse. This apology came moments before a judge delivered a sentencing that may result in her imprisonment for several years or even decades.
Franke claimed she had been “manipulated” by her business partner and fellow YouTuber, Jodi Hildebrandt. In court, she expressed regret and refrained from seeking a reduced sentence. Franke acknowledged the role of local police officers, doctors, and social workers as “angels” who intervened and saved her children from her actions.
Franke’s business partner, Hildebrandt, a Utah mental health counselor initially hired to work with Franke’s youngest son, also received four consecutive prison sentences of one to 15 years. However, both women are expected to serve a maximum of 30 years in prison under a Utah state law that limits consecutive penalties. The Utah Board of Pardons and Parole will assess their behavior during incarceration to determine the actual time served.
Addressing her absent children during the sentencing hearing in St. George, Franke expressed remorse, stating, “My willingness to sacrifice all for you was masterfully manipulated into something very ugly. I took from you all that was soft and safe and good.”
Franke and Hildebrandt had pleaded guilty to four counts of aggravated child abuse, involving attempts to convince Franke’s two youngest children that they were evil, possessed, and needed punishment to repent. Their arrest in August followed an escape by Franke’s 12-year-old son, who sought help from a neighbor. The boy was found thin, injured, and bound with duct tape.
Prosecutors described the living conditions imposed on the children as a “concentration camp-like setting.” Franke, showing remorse and cooperation, contrasted with Hildebrandt, who, according to prosecutors, failed to take responsibility and blamed the children. Hildebrandt’s attorney emphasized her acceptance of responsibility but stopped short of a direct apology.
Both women, in their guilty pleas, admitted to various forms of abuse, including physical harm and forced labor. The “8 Passengers” YouTube channel, run by Ruby Franke and her husband Kevin, chronicling their experiences raising six children, ended, and Kevin Franke filed for divorce.
The sentencing allows Franke and Hildebrandt 30 days to appeal their sentences.