In a shocking turn of events, Utah authorities found a panic room in the $5.3 million desert home of parenting blogger Jodi Hildebrandt in Ivins, where fellow blogger Ruby Franke sent her children to stay. Both women ran a joint YouTube channel called ConneXions Classrooms and pleaded guilty to four counts of second-degree aggravated child abuse in December 2023. The Washington County Attorney’s Office stated that the abuse was motivated by religious extremism, as the women believed that the abuse was necessary to teach the children how to repent for imagined sins and cast evil spirits out of their bodies.
The investigation began when one of Franke’s young sons escaped from Hildebrandt’s home and sought help from a neighbor. The boy appeared severely malnourished and had duct tape on his ankles. Police conducted a security sweep of the home and discovered a panic room in the basement with a safe door. Inside, they found a small room with a Murphy bed, cabinets, a refrigerator, a sink, and cleaning supplies. Franke’s daughter was found in a closet in Hildebrandt’s bathroom, also malnourished and emaciated.
The abuse the children experienced under the care of the parenting bloggers included forcing them to do physical labor, restricting food, binding one child’s hands and feet, and emotional harm. Franke and Hildebrandt told the children that they were evil and needed to be punished. After rescuing Franke’s youngest children from Hildebrandt’s home, police began searching for her other four kids, eventually locating them at another adult’s residence in Utah. Franke’s husband, who had been separated from her, stated that they had separated due to addictions, including pornography.
In numerous videos and social media posts, Franke and Hildebrandt provided parenting advice to their followers, advocating for discipline, including withholding food and other forms of punishment. Franke even referred to her children as “spawns of Satan” in a journal entry. The documents and videos released by the Washington County Attorney’s Office painted a dark picture of the abuse that the children endured while under the care of the two women. Franke, in a phone call, mentioned that children could be full of evil and difficult to understand for adults.
The revelations of abuse and mistreatment shocked many, as Franke had previously run a successful blog called 8Passengers that showcased her family of six children. However, backlash from controversial videos caused Franke to stop posting on the page. In one video, Franke mentioned withholding Christmas presents from her youngest children as punishment for what she perceived as selfish behavior. The disturbing accounts of abuse and neglect were documented in police reports, body camera footage, and interviews with the individuals involved.
The details released by authorities shed light on the disturbing practices and beliefs held by the two parenting bloggers, who claimed to provide guidance and advice to parents on raising their children. The investigation revealed the extent of the abuse inflicted on the children and the alarming conditions they were subjected to while in the care of Franke and Hildebrandt. The case sparked a national outcry and raised questions about the influence and impact of social media personalities on their followers, especially in matters of parenting and child care.
