Popular Parenting YouTubers Arrested for Child Abuse
YouTube vlogger Ruby Franke (YouTube channel '8 Passengers')and her business partner Jodi Hildebrandt have been charged with four counts of aggravated child abuse.
According to a press release from the Washington County Prosecutor's Office, the accused are charged with causing or permitting serious physical harm to the victims in three different ways: 1) multiple instances of physical harm or torture, 2) life-threatening starvation or malnourishment, and 3) severe emotional harm.
Ruby Franke
Police arrested Franke and Jodi last week after one child escaped through a window to a neighbor's house for food and water. The neighbor, noticing the unexpected guest was "emaciated and bound with tape," called the police, who found a second child suffering from starvation. Both children were taken to a nearby hospital, and Franke and Hildebrandt were arrested and held without bail.
Ruby and her husband Kevin have six children: Shari, Chad, Abby, Julie, Russell, and Eve. Kevin's lawyer stated that his client's "main concern is to keep his children together under his paternal care." Despite the charges against Ruby, Kevin and the journalist have maintained their relationship. However, Ruby's siblings described her arrest as a "weight lifted."
Franke's children
"The only thing we ultimately care about is that our nieces and nephews are safe, and they are safe. I know they will be taken care of. I know they will be alright,"
