Warning! This article contains references to child abuse.
Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke exposed the terrible crimes of Ruby Franke, a former mommy vlogger who was sent to prison for multiple counts of child abuse. The Franke family ran a popular YouTube family vlog channel called 8 Passengers, which accrued several million subscribers at the height of its popularity. However, due to various incidents, the parents’ harsh treatment of their children was called into question.
At one point in 2020, audiences turned on Ruby and her husband Kevin after learning about some of the cruel and unusual punishments they forced on their kids, and a petition gained 18,000 signatures to get child protective services to investigate the situation (via Time). Unfortunately, despite a visit to the Franke home, things only got worse over the next few years, until Ruby Franke, along with a lifestyle guru herself and her husband began following, were sentenced to a potentially lengthy stint in prison due to aggravated child abuse.
Ruby Franke Was Sentenced To 4-60 Years In Prison
Ruby Franke Was Found Guilty Of Four Counts Of Aggravated Child Abuse
The range of abuse was significant and vast, with the youngest four children suffering the worst, as outlined and documented in Ruby’s own handwritten records tracking the punishments. While Ruby’s middle two children were left at home for lengthy periods while she lived with Jodi Hildebrandt several hours away (via Business Insider), the two youngest children were literally tortured through cruel punishments Jodi and Ruby enacted upon them to try and exorcise devils from the kids.
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For these actions, both Ruby and Jodi were found guilty of four charges of aggravated child abuse. Each conviction carries a weight of one to 15 years’ time served in prison in the state of Utah (via Wasatch Defense Lawyers), which means Ruby received a sentence of at least four years in prison. After this time, it’s possible for the sentence to be deemed as served, though the severity of the case and the public nature of it suggests that it is less likely for Ruby to go free after such a short time.
Why Ruby Franke Won’t Serve More Than 30 Years
The Exact Length Of The Sentence Is Malleable
Despite being sentenced to a maximum of 60 years, Utah law determines that when a person is convicted of multiple counts, some of those counts are served concurrently rather than consecutively (via Utah.gov), except for capital punishment cases and life sentences. This means that despite being sentenced for a total maximum of 60 years, the real maximum time Ruby Franke could be imprisoned is 30 years. However, as mentioned above, she is eligible to be paroled after just four years.
Each conviction carries a weight of one to 15 years’ time served in prison in the state of Utah.
Ruby’s crimes were heinous and extremely upsetting, with her failing to provide her own children with the love, care, and comfort provided. The outcome of this, and particularly with regard to a case where she went to such extremes to cause discomfort, pain, and suffering for her children, is that Ruby was not fit to continue being the legal and biological guardian of her children. Whether the board deems her ready to re-enter society and walk free after just four years remains to be seen, but it’s difficult to imagine that the events shown in Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke could be satisfied in such a short period.