Parenting YouTuber Ruby Franke has been sentenced to four prison terms after being convicted of child cruelty.
The Utah Board of Pardons and Parole will ultimately determine the prison time, but the sentences could range from between one and 15 years each.
Franke gave parenting advice on the "8 Passengers" YouTube channel, which is now defunct. Her business partner Jodi Hildebrandt was also set to be sentenced Tuesday. They were each initially charged with six counts of aggravated child abuse.
Franke pleaded guilty to four counts of child abuse in December, saying that she tortured children. One of them, her son who is now 12, escaped Hildebrandt's home and raised the alarm, asking for help from a neighbor.
The trial revealed gruesome details of how Franke kept her son bound and that her 9-year-old daughter was made to do manual labor. Both children were told they were possessed and they were being punished for their own good.
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Hildebrandt also pleaded guilty to four counts of child abuse and stated in her plea agreement that she "either physically forced or coerced" Franke's daughter to "jump into a cactus multiple times."
"Even before the criminal charges, Franke was criticized on YouTube for her harsh punishments towards her children, including once banning one of her children from his bedroom for seven months because he pranked his younger brother," CBS News reported.
The pair were arrested on August 30, 2023.
"Utah law dictates a person guilty of a second-degree felony could serve up to 15 years in prison per count, with a possible $10,000 fine tacked on," a local Fox affiliate reported. "However, time spent in prison could be affected by the person's criminal history and any aggravating circumstances - such as child abuse. The Utah's Sentencing Guidelines are laid out in a nearly-mathematical formula, which judges are bound to depending on multiple circumstances."
Franke and Hildebrandt agreed in plea documents that they would serve their sentences consecutively.
