Ruby Franke is serving her prison sentence in Utah, according to Netflix’s case explainer. The explainer reports that she is housed in a separate section from co-defendant Jodi Hildebrandt and that Franke’s first parole hearing is scheduled for December 2026. That is a hearing month, not a release date; the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole is the official source for current hearing and decision information.
Where is Ruby Franke now?
Recent reporting by Netflix places Franke in Utah prison custody, at the same prison as Hildebrandt but housed separately. Prison placements and hearing schedules can change, so the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole’s Hearings & Decisions search is the place to check for the latest public status. The search result available for this article did not provide a Ruby-specific record or an exact hearing day.
When is her parole hearing, and does it mean she will be released?
Netflix reports that Franke’s first parole hearing is scheduled for December 2026. The hearing month is not a release date, and the outcome cannot be known before the Board makes its decision. The Board explains that an original hearing determines whether a parole-eligible person will be released before the sentence expires; its public search can show upcoming hearings and past decisions.
The Board says it weighs each case individually. Relevant considerations include the offense and sentence, court and corrections reports, risk, institutional behavior, victim impact, required programming or a Case Action Plan, and the release plan and community support. No single factor controls the decision. For a current individual status, use the Board’s search or contact the Board directly.
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What sentence did Ruby Franke receive?
Franke pleaded guilty to four counts of aggravated child abuse. On February 20, 2024, she was sentenced to four consecutive terms of one to 15 years, according to the Associated Press. The terms run consecutively rather than concurrently, but Utah law caps the aggregate consecutive prison time at 30 years; the maximum is not 60 years. Hildebrandt received the same sentence, AP reported.
How the case unfolded
Investigation and arrest
In August 2023, authorities investigated allegations that led to Franke and Hildebrandt’s criminal cases. The Washington County probable-cause affidavit and incident report are available in redacted form as county records. Because those records include sensitive details involving children, this account avoids identifying the children or reproducing graphic material.
Guilty plea and sentencing
Franke admitted guilt to four aggravated-child-abuse counts. The court imposed four consecutive one-to-15-year terms in February 2024. As AP explains, Utah’s 30-year aggregate cap limits the potential time for those consecutive terms.
Parole process
For a parole-eligible sentence, the Board holds an original hearing to decide whether release before the sentence expires will be granted. The Board combines consecutive and concurrent terms when calculating total minimum and maximum terms; the hearing is a decision point, not an automatic release trigger.
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What is publicly known about the Franke family?
The 8 Passengers channel ended, and Kevin Franke filed for divorce, AP reported. TIME reported that the four younger siblings were taken into state custody and received care after the arrests; Netflix’s later explainer says they are now in their father’s care. These are reported developments, not a basis for speculation about the children’s private lives, and their identifying details should remain private.
In a 2025 TIME interview, Kevin Franke said, “Vlogging my family, putting my children into public social media, was wrong, and I regret it every day.” His statement addresses family vlogging; it does not replace court records as a source for the criminal case.
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Documentary and family perspective
Netflix’s Evil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story provides documentary context for the case, and Netflix’s case explainer reports on the women’s current custody status. Shari Franke’s memoir, The House of My Mother: A Daughter’s Quest for Freedom, published in January 2025, offers a family member’s perspective, as reported by TIME. A memoir is a personal account, not an official court record or an impartial legal history.
Quick Recap
How to verify new developments
- Open the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole’s Hearings & Decisions search.
- Search by name or offender number to check for a listed upcoming hearing or past decision.
- For confirmation when a public listing does not resolve the question, contact the Board directly; do not rely on an unsourced social-media claim for an exact date, prison-program status, or release calculation.
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