Who is Ruby Franke? The YouTube parenting influencer who has admitted child abuse charges
A once-popular YouTube parent vlogger was arrested in August after her son was found emaciated and with duct tape on his limbs by a neighbour.
Ruby Franke faced six child abuse charges in the US state of Utah. She admitted four of them today.
Who is she, what controversy has she stirred before and what led to her arrest? Here is everything you need to know.
Who is Ruby Franke and what was her YouTube channel?
Ruby Franke and her husband launched their family YouTube channel, 8 Passengers, in early 2015.
The channel chronicled the lives of the parents and their six children and focused on parenting style, the children’s upbringing and discipline.
The parents, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (known as the Mormon Church), also shared their children’s home-schooling.
The channel gained 2.3 million subscribers before it was removed earlier this year.
What is Ruby Franke charged with?
Franke and her business partner Jodi Hildebrandt were both charged with six counts of aggravated child abuse.
Each count carries a prison sentence of up to 15 years and a fine of up to $10,000 (£8,044).
In Utah, aggravated child abuse is defined as an act that “inflicts upon a child serious physical injury” or “causes or permits another to inflict serious physical injury upon a child”.
“Each defendant is accused of causing or permitting serious physical injury to the victims in three different ways: (1) a combination of multiple physical injuries or torture, (2) starvation or malnutrition that jeopardises life, and (3) causing severe emotional harm,” the Washington County Attorney in Utah told Sky News’s sister outlet NBC News.
Who is Jodi Hildebrandt?
Hildebrandt founded the controversial life counselling organisation ConneXions, which Franke became a key part of.
The two women created advice videos that critics say promote a harsh style of parenting.
Hildebrandt has agreed not to see patients until the allegations against her are addressed by state licensing officials.
Her next court hearing is set for 27 December, according to court records.
Jodi Hildebrandt appears at a virtual court hearing. Pic: Utah State Courts via AP
What led to Ruby Franke’s arrest?
Franke’s arrest came after her 12-year-old son escaped out of the window of Hildebrandt’s house and ran to a neighbour asking for food and water.
The local police department released the audio of the neighbour’s 911 call.
“I just had a 12-year-old boy show up here in my front door asking for help,” he said.
He added: “We know there’s been problems at this neighbour’s house. He’s emaciated. He’s got tape around his legs. He’s hungry and he’s thirsty.”
The boy’s condition was judged by police to be so severe he was taken to hospital.
Franke’s 10-year-old daughter was later found malnourished and was also taken to the hospital.
The children were found at Hildebrandt’s house, but Franke had been seen on a YouTube video filmed there and posted two days earlier, indicating she was at the home and had knowledge of the abuse, malnourishment and neglect, arrest records said.
Four of Franke’s children are under 18 and have now been placed in care.
Ruby Franke appears at a virtual court hearing. Pic: Utah State Courts via AP
Previous reports to authorities
Police were called to Franke’s home last year after a concerned neighbour said her children had been left home alone for several days, according to NBC’s account of a police report.
A police officer who visited wrote in the report that he saw children inside, but they refused to open the door.
When police returned, Franke was there with her children, but would not talk to them.
Franke’s eldest daughter, Shari Franke, called the police wanting to make sure her siblings were safe and had food after the neighbour alerted her to her mother’s absence, the report said.
In 2020, viewers of 8 Passengers launched a petition to get child protection services to investigate Franke. Insider reported that officials visited the house but closed the case “because the claims were unsupported”.
How did Franke cause controversy with viewers?
Viewers had been calling out Franke’s parenting style and discipline choices for several years before her arrest.
The incident that prompted the petition was a video in which Franke’s eldest son revealed he slept on a beanbag for seven months because he had been moved out of his brother’s room for teasing him.
Franke defended herself in an interview with Insider, saying her son had chosen a beanbag over an airbed or a pullout guest bed.
She also angered viewers with a video about her 6-year-old forgetting her school lunch. In the video, Franke said she would not drop any food at school and her daughter should use the “pain” of being hungry as a lesson not to forget her lunch in future.
Franke was also criticised for threatening to throw away her children’s possessions and denying them personal space.
Neighbours also accused Franke of withholding food as a punishment for her children.
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.
“Everyone is just breathing a collective sigh of relief because we thought they were going to come out of that house with body bags,” one neighbour told NBC.
“I remember that she took away their Christmas one year,” he said, “and she would say things like ‘They’re not repenting correctly,’ which is a Mormon term for ‘they’re sinning.’ Just complete insanity.”
Read more:
Neighbours say they tried to warn child services
Sisters ‘did as much as we could’ to help kids
Franke’s time in court
When Franke and Hildebrandt had their first court hearing on 8 September it was derailed by tech issues as more than 1,000 people tried to join virtually.
YouTube commentator Tezzmosis provided a live commentary of the hearing to people who couldn’t get on the live stream.
He later told NBC he believed the intense public interest stems from the clear disconnect the case illustrates between the “perfect image” a parenting influencer can present online versus their family’s reality.
“They’ve been on [authorities’] radar for a couple of years,” he said, referring to the news police had previously visited Franke’s house due to concerns about her alleged treatment of her children.
“But being from an affluent family and having this notoriety in such a way, I think it was so hard for people to believe that something so bad could be going on beyond the surface,” Tezzmosis added.
‘I am not my sister’s crimes’
Two sisters of Franke used YouTube vlogs to distance themselves from her, both uploading videos on 14 September.
In a video titled “I am not my sister. I am not my sister’s crimes”, Bonnie Hoellein said she was “cut off” from the family and “did not have access to anyone”.
She said she disagreed with what she called her sister’s “extreme” parenting tactics and “did everything legally that we could do” to help the children.
Ellie Mecham, another of Franke’s sisters, also said in an Instagram post they had done “everything we could to try and make sure the kids were safe”.
Franke’s eldest daughter has also spoken out. Shari Franke, 20, said in an Instagram story after her mother’s arrest: “We’ve been trying to tell the police and CPS for years about this, and so glad they finally decided to step up.”
Other influencers have also shared their shock at her crimes.
Julie Deru, who has a family channel called Deru Crew Vlogs, said she last spoke to Franke three years ago.
“We are kind of in complete shock, still, as to what she had done, because we had no idea of what was happening,” she said.
What about the father, Kevin Franke?
Kevin Franke’s lawyer appeared on Good Morning America to distance Ruby Franke’s husband from the child abuse allegations she faces.
The lawyer said the couple had been living separately for 13 months and Kevin Franke was “distraught” after hearing about the alleged abuse.
“No one’s ever made any allegations that he’s ever physically abused those kids, or anyone else,” he told the programme.
Val Kilmer, the actor who starred in Top Gun and played Batman and Jim Morrison, has died aged 65.
His daughter Mercedes told the Associated Press he died of pneumonia on Tuesday night in Los Angeles surrounded by family and friends.
Kilmer was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014 but later recovered, she said.
The actor, who played Tom ‘Iceman’ Kazansky in Top Gun alongside Tom Cruise in 1986, previously admitted he didn’t want the role, which made him famous.
But he said he begged to be part of the sequel, Top Gun: Maverick in 2022, even going as far as contacting the producers and creating “heartrending scenes with Iceman”. It would be his final acting role.
Kilmer had a colourful romantic past, having dated Hollywood stars including Cindy Crawford, Angelina Jolie, Carly Simon and Cher.
He starred in Willow in 1988 and married his British co-star Joanne Whalley. The couple had two children before they divorced in 1996.
Kilmer with his former wife British actress Joanne Whalley in 1989. Pic Shutterstock
Val Kilmer appeared alongside Nicole Kidman in Batman Forever. Pic: Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock
Kilmer portrayed Batman in the 1995 film Batman Forever and received critical acclaim for his portrayal of rock singer Jim Morrison in the 1991 movie The Doors.
He also starred in True Romance and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, as well as playing criminal Chris Shiherlis in Michael Mann’s 1995 movie Heat and Doc Holiday in the 1993 film Tombstone.
Kilmer was one of the best-paid actors in the 1990s and in 1992 film critic Roger Ebert wrote, “if there is an award for the most unsung leading man of his generation, Kilmer should get it”.
In his 2020 memoir Your Huckleberry, Kilmer discussed his throat cancer diagnosis and recovery.
Actor Josh Brolin wrote on Instagram: “See ya, pal. I’m going to miss you. You were a smart, challenging, brave, uber-creative firecracker. There’s not a lot left of those.
“I hope to see you up there in the heavens when I eventually get there. Until then, amazing memories, lovely thoughts.”
In an Instagram post actor Josh Gad called Kilmer “an icon”.
He said: “RIP Val Kilmer. Thank you for defining so many of the movies of my childhood. You truly were an icon.”
Val Kilmer in 2017. Pic: AP
Kilmer made his Broadway debut in the 1983 production of Slab Boys with Sean Penn and Kevin Bacon.
He also appeared in Shakespeare plays in New York – playing the title role in Hamlet and appearing in Henry IV: Part One and As You Like It.
In 2005, he starred on London’s West End in Andrew Rattenbury’s adaptation of The Postman Always Rings Twice at the Playhouse Theatre.
Kilmer also enjoyed painting, with his website describing him as a “talented and prolific artist in a variety of mediums”.
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“Liberation day” was due to be on 1 April. But Donald Trump decided to shift it by a day because he didn’t want anyone to think it was an April fool.
It is no joke for him and it is no joke for governments globally as they brace for his tariff announcements.
It is stunning how little we know about the plans to be announced in the Rose Garden of the White House later today.
It was telling that we didn’t see the President at all on Tuesday. He and all his advisers were huddled in the West Wing, away from the cameras, finalising the tariff plans.
Follow the events of Liberation Day live as they unfold
Three key figures are central to it all.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is the so-called ‘measured voice’. A former hedge fund manager, he has argued for targeted not blanket tariffs.
Peter Navarro is Trump’s senior counsellor for trade and manufacturing. A long-time aide and confidante of the president, he is a true loyalist and a firm believer in the merits of tariffs.
His economic views are well beyond mainstream economic thought – precisely why he appeals to Trump.
The third key character is Howard Lutnick, the commerce secretary and the biggest proponent of the full-throttle liberation day tariff juggernaut.
The businessman, philanthropist, Trump fundraiser and billionaire (net worth ranging between $1bn and $2bn) has been among the closest to Trump over the past 73 days of this presidency – frequently in and out of the West Wing.
If anything goes wrong, observers here in Washington suspect Trump will make Lutnick the fall guy.
What are Donald Trump’s tariffs, what is ‘liberation day’ and how does it all affect the UK?
And what if it does all go wrong? What if Trump is actually the April fool?
“It’s going to work…” his press secretary said when asked if it could all be a disaster, driving up the cost of living for Americans and creating global economic chaos.
“The president has a brilliant team who have been studying these issues for decades and we are focussed on restoring the global age of America…” Karoline Leavitt said.
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‘Days of US being ripped off are over’
Dancing to the president’s tune
My sense is that we should see “liberation day” not as the moment it’s all over in terms of negotiations for countries globally as they try to carve out deals with the White House. Rather it should be seen as the start.
Trump, as always, wants to be seen as the one calling the shots, taking control, seizing the limelight. He wants the world to dance to his tune. Today is his moment.
But beyond today, alongside the inevitable tit-for-tat retaliation, expect to see efforts by nations to seek carve-outs and to throw bones to Trump; to identify areas where trade policies can be tweaked to placate the president.
Even small offerings which change little in a material sense could give Trump the chance to spin and present himself as the winning deal maker he craves to be.
One significant challenge for foreign governments and their diplomats in Washington has been engaging the president himself with proposals he might like.
Negotiations take place with a White House team who are themselves unsure where the president will ultimately land. It’s resulted in unsatisfactory speculative negotiations.
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Treasury minister: ‘We’ll do everything to secure a deal’
Too much faith placed in the ‘special relationship’?
The UK believes it’s in a better position than most other countries globally. It sits outside the EU giving it autonomy in its trade policy, its deficit with the US is small, and Trump loves Britain.
It’s true too that the UK government has managed to accelerate trade conversations with the White House on a tariff-free trade partnership. Trump’s threats have forced conversations that would normally sit in the long grass for months.
Yet, for now, the conversations have yielded nothing firm. That’s a worry for sure. Did Keir Starmer have too much faith in the ‘special relationship’?
Downing Street will have identified areas where they can tweak trade policy to placate Trump. Cars maybe? Currently US cars into the UK carry a 10% tariff. Digital services perhaps?
US food? Unlikely – there are non-tariff barriers on US food because the consensus seems to be that chlorinated chicken and the like isn’t something UK consumers want.
Easier access to UK financial services maybe? More visas for Americans?
For now though, everyone is waiting to see what Trump does before they either retaliate or relent and lower their own market barriers.
US
Democrat Cory Booker rails against Donald Trump and Elon Musk during marathon Senate speech lasting more than 17 hours
A senior Democrat has taken to the Senate floor to speak against US President Donald Trump – with the 17-plus-hour speech still ongoing.
Cory Booker, a New Jersey senator, began speaking around 7pm (midnight in the UK) and said he intended to disrupt the “normal business of the United States Senate for as long as I am physically able”.
Referring to Mr Trump’s presidency, he said: “I rise tonight because I believe sincerely that our country is in crisis.”
As of 5pm in the UK, Mr Booker was still speaking, having spoken for more than 17 hours. He has remained standing for the entire duration, as he would lose control of the floor if he left his desk or sat down.
Read more: Who is the Democrat making a marathon speech against Trump?
As of 4pm, Cory Booker has held the Senate floor for more than 16 hours. Pic: Senate Television / AP
Other Democrat senators have joined Mr Booker to ask questions so he can rest his voice, including Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer.
At the start of his speech, Mr Booker said: “These are not normal times in our nation. And they should not be treated as such in the United States Senate.
“The threats to the American people and American democracy are grave and urgent, and we all must do more to stand against them.”
Overnight, he referenced Strom Thurmond of South Carolina, who filibustered for 24 hours and 18 minutes against the Civil Rights Act of 1957.
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“You think we got civil rights one day because Strom Thurmond – after filibustering for 24 hours – you think we got civil rights because he came to the floor one day and said ‘I’ve seen the light’,” he said.
“No, we got civil rights because people marched for it, sweat for it and [civil rights leader] John Lewis bled for it.”
Only Mr Thurmond and Republican Senator Ted Cruz – who spoke for 21 hours and 19 minutes against the Affordable Care Act in 2013 – have held the Senate floor for longer than Mr Booker.
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