Disgraced YouTube mommy blogger Ruby Franke wept in court as she was told she will serve up to 30 years in prison for brutally abusing two of her own children in a ‘concentration camp-like setting’.
One of The Children Sold Her Out
Franke, 42, pleaded guilty last year to four counts of child abuse after one of her young children escaped and alerted a neighbor to their suffering.
Court Ruling
She was sentenced to between one to 15 years in prison for each count – up to 60 years in total – at Utah’s 5th District Court on Tuesday. Both women will serve their sentences in Utah State Prison.
How much time she will spend in jail will be determined by the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole, and state law means she can only serve a maximum of 30 years.
She Apologized Tearfully
Franke, who has six children in total, broke down while speaking in court as she apologized to her ‘little chicks’ and told the judge she was willing to serve her time.
Franke’s business partner Jodi Hildebrandt was handed down the same sentence on Tuesday.
The criminal ‘Momfluencer’ became an internet sensation thanks to her YouTube channel 8 Passengers where millions of viewers watched how she and then husband, Kevin Franke, raised, and disciplined, their six children.
But late last year, shocking claims emerged that Franke, a Mormon, had spent years abusing her children.
Franke was arrested alongside her business partner Jodi Hildebrandt and the pair pleaded guilty in late December.
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Court Briefing
Chief Deputy Washington County Attorney Ryan Shaum said in a written statement on Tuesday that Franke and Hildebrandt’s actions amounted to ‘some of the worst child abuse’ he had seen in nearly 30 years of prosecuting.
‘For over three months, the two children, ages 9 and 11-12, were held by their mother and her business partner in a concentration-camp setting.
‘They were regularly denied food, water, beds to sleep in, and virtually all forms of entertainment. They were also prohibited from interacting with others and were hidden in the home when people came to visit’.
He added that the children were forced to do manual labor outdoors in the extreme summer heat without shoes or socks.
‘They were beaten, and the 12-year-old was bound hand and foot after he attempted to run away,’ he added.
