UT - Parenting influencer, Ruby Franke, and blogger/podcast partner Jodi Hildebrandt, arrested for Child Abuse, Aug 2023

[airportwoman]

That is such an odd story - what is she doing in someone else's garage in the first place? What a self-righteous busybody. jmo

The neighbor may have had the garage door open and she happened to walk by.

 

[airportwoman]

If her kids are so horrifically evil, that they need constant, harsh punishments and to be kept away from other children, because they’re so dangerous, what does that say about HER parenting? Why do people think they should follow the parenting advice of someone whose kids never do better, but only get “worse”?

(Note that I’m not saying these kids aren’t anything but normal kids but, you get my point).

That sounds familiar, to me unfortunately.

 

[NeverPersonal]

Too little, too late. All these family members knew exactly what was happening in that house. They knew the children were treated abominably. Even the oldest daughter, who I will give a pass to because she is traumatized) knew what was going on. Why didn't they go to the cops? Why didn't they take some of the younger ones out of that environment.
The oldest ones left and left their young, vulnerable siblings there to bear the brunt of the assaults and probably bore the anger the mother felt at the older ones who left.

As for the father, why on earth would he take the oldest boy yet not fight to get the smaller kids out of there? Apathy is as bad as involvement. It boggles my mind that now that the cops are well aware of the treatment those kids endured, they are all singing like canaries. I don't think her sisters or her husband get a pass. Disgraceful.

they went to the cops and to CPS. multiple, multiple times. the oldest daughter and all 4 of ruby's sisters. nothing was done until this horrible event. they have one closed CPS case against them from a couple years ago.

 

[tlcya]

• In May, Ruby and Kevin Franke of the YouTube channel 8 Passengers found themselves in the middle of a tidal wave of rumors and accusations about their family.
• Drama YouTube channels and TikTokers used a clip of a recent video where the Frankes' 15-year-old son, Chad, was talking about sleeping on a beanbag to support allegations of child abuse. They also trawled the family's past videos, looking for evidence of abuse.
• Many people were upset when it emerged that one of the Frankes' daughters, Eve, had gone to school without lunch one day.
• Child protective services were even called to their house after one viewer set up a Change.org petition.
• Ruby and Kevin told Insider that clips were taken out of context and that there was more to Chad's story than they've shown.

Lindsay Dodgson Jun 25, 2020, 7:55 AM CDT
These YouTuber parents are speaking out after drama channels and TikTokers accused them of being abusive to their children and had child protective services visit their house
this old story didn't age well at all. Considering the very concerns raised by the online community 3 years ago appears to have been validated. MOO

I have seen several of Ruby's videos and they were full of red flags for me. I never understood her popularity and now that she has been accused of abusing her children it scares me how many people followed her "principals" of accountability. How many other parents who bought into her bull are out there "parenting" her way because - influencer. sick.

Franke's Daughter Has Spoken Out About Her Mother's Arrest​

Shari Franke, Ruby Franke’s oldest and estranged daughter, welcomed the news of the arrest. “Today has been a big day," Shari wrote on Instagram. "Me and my family are so glad justice is being served. We've been trying to tell the police and CPS for years about this, and so glad they finally decided to step up." Shari also said on Instagram that the two siblings who were taken to the hospital are doing well.
[snip]
Shari also called on her Instagram followers to report any suspicious comments Franke made on a publicly shared Google Doc. As of Sept. 1, the document had nearly 100 links to different remarks Franke allegedly has made in video clips over the years that included transphobic and ableist comments, and others that discussed withholding food from her kids.
All About Ruby Franke: Everything to Know About the Influencer Mom Accused of Child Abuse

“Everyone is just breathing a collective sigh of relief, because we thought they were going to come out of that house with body bags,” a male neighbor said.
[snip]
Neighbors said Franke would insert herself into other neighbors’ lives; one neighbor cited an instance in which Franke gave a sermon-like lecture over what she called “inappropriate” posters of women posing in shorts that were displayed in a garage. Franke kicked her husband, Kevin, out of the home last year, a source with knowledge of their relationship said.
[snip]
They also claimed that, after her husband was out of the home, Franke would leave the house for weeks at a time, with the children inside.

“I remember that she took away their Christmas one year,” the male neighbor said, “and she would say things like ‘They’re not repenting correctly,’ which is a Mormon term for ‘they’re sinning.’ Just complete insanity.”

The male neighbor recalled how Franke’s youngest daughter, E, who is about 10 years old, would wander the neighborhood while her mother was away for prolonged periods after she kicked Kevin Franke out of the house. E would look for companions in the community, the neighbors said. The neighbors said it did not seem like she was attending school. (The Nebo School District, which represents that Springville area, did not immediately reply to a request for comment.)

“She would just knock on your door and say, ‘Hi, can your kids play?’” he recalled. “And we’re like: ‘Well, they’re at school. They won’t be home for three or four hours.’ And she’d be like, ‘I’ll wait.’” He added, “She’s like this lost child.”
Neighbors say they tried to help Ruby Franke’s kids before YouTuber’s arrest on child abuse charges

 

[ArianeEmory]

I have a deep and long-running distaste for social media, influencers, and other ways in which technology is causing new problems that no one saw coming. (Ironic since I’m an old computer nerd who was absolutely ecstatic with the advent of open-access internet.)

So anyway, I mention this because I don’t have any context here. I don’t “follow” any famous YouTubers or whatever. Am I reading correctly that these people were abusing their kids, or at least doing stuff that came right up against the edges of abuse, and people were just watching it for entertainment?

 

[tlcya]

I have a deep and long-running distaste for social media, influencers, and other ways in which technology is causing new problems that no one saw coming. (Ironic since I’m an old computer nerd who was absolutely ecstatic with the advent of open-access internet.)

So anyway, I mention this because I don’t have any context here. I don’t “follow” any famous YouTubers or whatever. Am I reading correctly that these people were abusing their kids, or at least doing stuff that came right up against the edges of abuse, and people were just watching it for entertainment?

worse, people were watching it because it was "parenting advice" on teaching your children "accountability".

This horrible woman, who I am pretty sure has a couple of diagnosis that need to be made sooner rather than later, had 2.3 million followers on youtube prior to it being shut down earlier this year. 2.3 million subscribers watching her be cruel to her children (usually verbally but the physical stuff appears to have amped up over recent years)

couldn't watch her channel and didn't quite understand why people would find her worthy of following or being an "influencer"

 

[Elley Mae]

I have a deep and long-running distaste for social media, influencers, and other ways in which technology is causing new problems that no one saw coming. (Ironic since I’m an old computer nerd who was absolutely ecstatic with the advent of open-access internet.)

So anyway, I mention this because I don’t have any context here. I don’t “follow” any famous YouTubers or whatever. Am I reading correctly that these people were abusing their kids, or at least doing stuff that came right up against the edges of abuse, and people were just watching it for entertainment?

The whole influencer thing is crazy to me. Who decides who is a influencer? How can someone like her or the one who decided to eat 2 fruits to live off of and of course died.

How are those two influencers?

 

[Inthedetails]

dbm

 

[Inthedetails]

I have a deep and long-running distaste for social media, influencers, and other ways in which technology is causing new problems that no one saw coming. (Ironic since I’m an old computer nerd who was absolutely ecstatic with the advent of open-access internet.)

So anyway, I mention this because I don’t have any context here. I don’t “follow” any famous YouTubers or whatever. Am I reading correctly that these people were abusing their kids, or at least doing stuff that came right up against the edges of abuse, and people were just watching it for entertainment?

The vlogs are like DIY reality-tv.

jmo

 

[ArianeEmory]

The whole influencer thing is crazy to me. Who decides who is a influencer? How can someone like her or the one who decided to eat 2 fruits to live off of and of course died.

How are those two influencers?

Yes, this exactly. I can tell that there’s some sort of force (charisma?) that is affecting X percentage of people and causing them to “follow” certain strangers online (on in real life, with cult behavior at the extreme end), but it doesn’t happen to me and I don’t know what it feels like.

I assume it’s similar to parasocial relationships, where people feel like they’re in a reciprocal “friendship” with celebs or politicians when they’re not … only much worse now because the internet makes those people seem much more accessible.

(Don’t get me wrong, I have actors I like, chefs whose cookbooks I buy, musicians who inspire me, I just never kid myself that I have any idea what they’re like in real life.)

Sorry for this diversion. I suppose the good news is that eventually enough people spoke up to get the situation shut down in this case? Hopefully another abusive household hasn’t already popped up to grab the viewers …

 

[Teche]

I cringe when I hear the term, ‘They're not repenting correctly’.

 

[ArianeEmory]

I completely missed that this was another one for the “weird Utah crimes” list. :/

 

[Salah11]

What do people think the long term goal was?

Surely neither was planning to kill E & R but then why wouldn’t they tell everybody what had been done to them when released?

 

[tlcya]

What do people think the long term goal was?

Surely neither was planning to kill E & R but then why wouldn’t they tell everybody what had been done to them when released?

I think at this point the two youngest have been held away from school, not allowed friends, once released from being bound or held in a room there would be nobody to tell. Who would they tell? Mom's good friend, Jodie who was clearly a part of their abuse in the first place? I suspect the oldest were not as easy to control and therefore not taken when Ruby went to stay at Jodie's. The youngest were taken with Ruby because they are easier to control through fear and had less options of someone to tell of their abuse.

ETA I also believe if articles are to be believed about she and Kevin separating, the younger kids represent more money in the form of child support.

 

[Salah11]

I think at this point the two youngest have been held away from school, not allowed friends, once released from being bound or held in a room there would be nobody to tell. Who would they tell? Mom's good friend, Jodie who was clearly a part of their abuse in the first place? I suspect the oldest were not as easy to control and therefore not taken when Ruby went to stay at Jodie's. The youngest were taken with Ruby because they are easier to control through fear and had less options of someone to tell of their abuse.

ETA I also believe if articles are to be believed about she and Kevin separating, the younger kids represent more money in the form of child support.

Yes all valid points

I am just assuming that the dad at some point would demand to see them because legally she couldn’t stop him. You would of also of hoped even if they were scared that the middle two girls would also tell somebody what was going on because it sounds like this had been going on awhile.

I just hate the thought that these little kids had nobody in their corner and felt abandoned while this was going on.

ETA - I hope R will one day be proud of the fact he rescued him and his sister and showed more bravery than his entire family put together

 

[NeverPersonal]

The whole influencer thing is crazy to me. Who decides who is a influencer? How can someone like her or the one who decided to eat 2 fruits to live off of and of course died.

How are those two influencers?

People who use their kids to become famous are the strangest people, and I feel like it's almost always an abusive scenario any time I have seen it.

The vlogs are like DIY reality-tv.

jmo

Spot on.

What do people think the long term goal was?

Surely neither was planning to kill E & R but then why wouldn’t they tell everybody what had been done to them when released?

I mean, the short and long term goal was Ruby's enjoyment. She gets enjoyment out of her kids' suffering. I feel that's incredibly obvious in the videos, and also, when they're happy, she doesn't like that. She will look angry or make a face if they don't react to being punished because they're so used to it. She had to keep upping the ante in order to get the same amount of enjoyment out of controlling her kids' every movements.

And with 2 grown kids out of the house, and the others with her husband... she was hyperfocused on these two, who I believe are R and E, and she has ALWAYS been particularly harsh to them for some reason. I've followed this for about 5 years because I saw this train wreck coming from a million miles away, and she even posted her daughters getting their periods or shaving for the first time - I'll give you one guess on what kind of audience that attracts. She didn't care as long as she was raking in the money. She was making millions of dollars, no joke.

She made a video on her Connexions channel crying about how she had to delete the 8Passengers channel. She was sobbing about what a bad and entitled mother she'd been, and I was like woah is she realizing something? Nope. She was crying because she "was way too easy on them". WHAT. You can find this video by searching YouTube.

If you really feel like taking a break from this devastating timeline of events & entertaining yourself, there are videos of her that went viral regarding crying over her child doing a dance to a Flo Rida song for a TikTok. This situation isn't funny, but that video provided some real comedic relief to me.

**my opinions etc

 

[tlcya]

Yes all valid points

I am just assuming that the dad at some point would demand to see them because legally she couldn’t stop him. You would of also of hoped even if they were scared that the middle two girls would also tell somebody what was going on because it sounds like this had been going on awhile.

I just hate the thought that these little kids had nobody in their corner and felt abandoned while this was going on.

ETA - I hope R will one day be proud of the fact he rescued him and his sister and showed more bravery than his entire family put together

agreed, R is E's hero. I hope he knows it one day.

I also agree bout the children thinking they had nowhere to turn. That really seems to bother some of the neighbors as well. They seem to have tried at various points to report their concerns but for whatever reason those concerns weren't taken seriously. I suspect those complaints weren't taken as seriously about RF as they would have been about someone who looked a bit different or came from a different socioeconomic background. IMO MOO

Ruby Franke’s neighbors warned cops about YouTuber before arrest on child abuse charges
“I’m really angry, because I spoke up. Other people spoke up. And nothing happened,” the woman said.

“If people knew the amount of tears and time spent talking with law enforcement and CPS over the last year — I want people to understand that. And I want those kids to know that, because I think they thought they were abandoned.”

 

[Teche]

People who use their kids to become famous are the strangest people, and I feel like it's almost always an abusive scenario any time I have seen it.

Spot on.

I mean, the short and long term goal was Ruby's enjoyment. She gets enjoyment out of her kids' suffering. I feel that's incredibly obvious in the videos, and also, when they're happy, she doesn't like that. She will look angry or make a face if they don't react to being punished because they're so used to it. She had to keep upping the ante in order to get the same amount of enjoyment out of controlling her kids' every movements.

And with 2 grown kids out of the house, and the others with her husband... she was hyperfocused on these two, who I believe are R and E, and she has ALWAYS been particularly harsh to them for some reason. I've followed this for about 5 years because I saw this train wreck coming from a million miles away, and she even posted her daughters getting their periods or shaving for the first time - I'll give you one guess on what kind of audience that attracts. She didn't care as long as she was raking in the money. She was making millions of dollars, no joke.

She made a video on her Connexions channel crying about how she had to delete the 8Passengers channel. She was sobbing about what a bad and entitled mother she'd been, and I was like woah is she realizing something? Nope. She was crying because she "was way too easy on them". WHAT. You can find this video by searching YouTube.

If you really feel like taking a break from this devastating timeline of events & entertaining yourself, there are videos of her that went viral regarding crying over her child doing a dance to a Flo Rida song for a TikTok. This situation isn't funny, but that video provided some real comedic relief to me.

**my opinions etc

Are the younger children in the care of the father or in Foster Care?

 

[tlcya]

Are the younger children in the care of the father or in Foster Care?

my understanding is that the four minor children of the Frankes are in the custody of DCF and NOT their father.

 

[Salah11]

my understanding is that the four minor children of the Frankes are in the custody of DCF and NOT their father.

I hope an investigation is done into Kevin as well. The fact he wants full custody is also alarming as everybody who watched them for years knows he was complicit as well. I am not saying he went as far as Ruby but he certainly never stopped her and stood up for them.

Mooo