Crime
Youtube Mum Ruby Franke Guilty of Child Abuse: Latest Developments
A popular family vlogger, Rudy Franke, known for her parenting advice, has pleaded guilty to four counts of child abuse.
Franke was arrested in August 2023 after her 12-year-old son was found malnourished and injured with duct tape on his ankles from where he had been restrained.
He later told police in Ivins, Utah, that he had been tied with ropes on his ankles and wrists. Franke’s 9-year-old daughter also suffered similar abuse, working outside and running around barefoot.
Guilty Plea and Charges
Franke appeared in court alongside business partner Jodi Firebrandt, who the son had said tied him up. Franke was accused of trying to convince her two younger children they were evil, possessed and needed to be punished to repent. Franke pleaded guilty to the first three charges of child abuse that were put before her and appeared emotional before admitting guilt to the fourth charge.
Sentencing
Four of Franke’s six children were protected by child services. Franke will be sentenced on February 20, 2024.
Background and Controversy
Franke rose to fame with her controversial parenting discipline tips, which included refusing to take lunch to a kindergartener who forgot it at home and threatening to cut the head off a young girl’s stuffed toy to punish her for cutting things in the house.
In one video, Franke said she and her husband told their two youngest children that they would not get presents from Santa Claus one year because they had been selfish and weren’t responding to punishment like being home from school and cleaning the floorboards.
The Franke family was criticized online for its ‘8 Passengers’ video blog showing parenting decisions, including banning their oldest son from his bedroom for seven months for pranking his younger brother.
Prosecution and Plea Agreement
Franke’s abuse happened while she was influenced by relationship counsellor Jodi Firebrandt, who led her to a ‘distorted sense of morality’. Franke believed that he ‘had the insight to offer a path to continual improvement’ but ‘took advantage of this quest and twisted it into something heinous.’
Prosecutors charged Franke with aggravated child abuse, a first-degree felony, and three second-degree felony counts of child abuse. Franke reached a plea deal with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to four counts of child abuse.
State Custody and Parenting Decisions
Franke’s two malnourished children were taken into state custody. Franke was accused of denying her children food and water and using cayenne pepper and honey to dress their wounds. Franke’s parenting decisions were criticized for being abusive and manipulative.
Franke kicked her son while wearing boots, held his head underwater, and covered his mouth and nose with her hands. He was manipulated into thinking the punishments were acts of love. Franke’s daughter was told she was evil and possessed, and the sentences were ‘necessary for her to be obedient and repent.’
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