| Revision as of 19:30, 5 September 2023 editSchazjmd (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users67,943 edits redundant word← Previous edit | Revision as of 19:39, 5 September 2023 edit undoTherangerrick (talk | contribs)56 editsm BirthdayTags: Reverted Visual editNext edit → | ||
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| '''Ruby Franke''' (born |
'''Ruby Franke''' {{nee|Griffiths}} (born January 18, 1982)<ref name=BBC>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-66651506 |title=Ruby Franke: '8 Passengers' parenting mum arrested on child abuse suspicion |publisher=BBC News |date=2023-09-01 }}</ref><ref name=NYT>{{Cite news |last=Tumin |first=Remy |date=2023-09-01 |title=Host of YouTube Parenting Channel Is Charged With Child Abuse |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/01/us/ruby-franke-child-abuse-arrest.html |access-date=2023-09-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230902191719/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/01/us/ruby-franke-child-abuse-arrest.html |archive-date=September 2, 2023 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> is a family ] who ran the now defunct ] channel '''8 Passengers''', which documented her family life from 2015 to 2021. The channel was removed from the platform in early 2023. | ||
| On August 30, 2023, she was arrested and charged with six counts of ]. | On August 30, 2023, she was arrested and charged with six counts of ]. | ||
Revision as of 19:39, 5 September 2023
Family vlogger who ran a YouTube channel
| Ruby Franke | |
|---|---|
| File:230831-Ruby-Franke-ew-510p-3162d4.webp | |
| Born | January 18, 1982 |
| Occupation(s) | YouTuber, vlogger, life coach |
| Years active | 2015-2021 |
| Known for | 8 Passengers YouTube Channel |
| Spouse | Kevin Franke |
| Children | 6 |
Ruby Franke née Griffiths (born January 18, 1982) is a family vlogger who ran the now defunct YouTube channel 8 Passengers, which documented her family life from 2015 to 2021. The channel was removed from the platform in early 2023.
On August 30, 2023, she was arrested and charged with six counts of aggravated child abuse.
Career
Ruby’s YouTube career began in 2015 when she a created a channel under the name of 8 Passengers. It frequently featured intimate moments of her family life with her husband, Kevin, and six children in Utah. The channel amassed nearly 2.5 million subscribers during its operation.
Child abuse allegations
Concerns surrounding Ruby and Kevin's parenting methods began in the summer of 2019 when their eldest son, Chad, was visibly absent from the family vlogs. They later revealed in August of that year that Chad had been sent to the Anasazi Foundation Wilderness Therapy Program in Arizona, a 10-week behavior correctional camp for 'troubled youth.' In a video defending their reasoning, the Franke's stated that it was due to an "accumulation of things over the years..." and that Chad had exhibited "behavioral issues" for quite some time.
In May of 2020, Ruby uploaded a video in which Chad had revealed that he had been barred from access to his bedroom due to a prank on his younger brother Russell, and that he had been sleeping on a bean bag in the family room for "seven months." Not long after, past clips from the 8 Passengers channel resurfaced which included Ruby withholding food, threatening to decapitate her youngest daughter's stuffed toy, and telling two of her children that Santa Claus would not be bringing them anything for Christmas that year because they were "too numb" to other punishments.
A Change.org petition was filed on May 31, 2020, in hopes that Utah's Child Protective Services would intervene and open an investigation into the Franke household. Ruby and Kevin would later go on to post a video to their Instagram page in defense of the discipline, saying that the incidents had been taken out of context.
After significant decline in popularity and multiple allegations of child abuse and neglect, Ruby slowly began to step away from the channel's operation in 2021. The channel was later removed from YouTube's platform sometime in 2023.
From 2021 to 2023, Franke began working as a mental health coach at ConneXions, a company run by Jodi Nan Hildebrandt, a counselor. They have also appeared in videos together and partnered in offering parenting classes.
Arrest
On August 30, 2023, Franke and Hildebrandt were arrested in Ivins, Utah, and on September 1 both were charged on six counts of aggravated child abuse. According to a statement from the Santa Clara-Ivins Public Safety Department, Franke's 12-year-old son, who appeared emaciated and had "open wounds and duct tape around the extremities", had climbed through a window of Hildebrandt's house and asked at a neighboring house for food and water. Emergency services found Franke's 10-year-old daughter in the house, also malnourished; both children were taken to a hospital, where the boy was treated for severe malnourishment and "deep lacerations from being tied up with rope". A search of the house found evidence "consistent with the markings" on the 12-year-old, and the Utah Division of Child and Family Services took the boy and girl and two more of Franke's children into care.
Personal life
The Franke's are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Their oldest daughter has stated that she has long disapproved of her mother's parenting strategies. Franke has three sisters who are also parenting influencers.
References
- ^ "Ruby Franke: '8 Passengers' parenting mum arrested on child abuse suspicion". BBC News. September 1, 2023.
- ^ Tumin, Remy (September 1, 2023). "Host of YouTube Parenting Channel Is Charged With Child Abuse". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
- ^ Christensen, Megan Marsden (January 16, 2016). "Springville mother documents family life on popular YouTube channel". KSL.com. Deseret Digital Media. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
- ^ Ables, Kelsey; Bellware, Kim (September 1, 2023). "What to know about Ruby Franke, parenting YouTuber charged with child abuse". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
- ^ Hanson, Amy Beth (September 1, 2023). "Parenting advice YouTuber Ruby Franke charged with aggravated child abuse of 2 of her 6 children". Associated Press. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
- ^ Dodgson, Lindsay (June 25, 2020). "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". Business Insider. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
- ^ Walrath-Holdridge, Mary (September 1, 2023). "Who is Ruby Franke? 8 Passengers family vlogger arrested on child abuse charges". USA Today. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
- Raphael, Shannon (June 3, 2020). "Why Are Some Viewers Accusing the Mom From 8 Passengers of Abuse?". Distractify. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
- Raphael, Shannon (June 3, 2020). "Why Are Some Viewers Accusing the Mom From 8 Passengers of Abuse?". Distractify. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
- "Ruby Franke: '8 Passengers' parenting mum arrested on child abuse suspicion". BBC News. September 1, 2023.
- ^ Sole, Elise (September 1, 2023). "YouTuber mom Ruby Franke arrested and charged in child abuse investigation". Today.com. Retrieved September 2, 2023.