A Utah man claims he lost more than $1 million in earning potential after his spouse became enthralled with disgraced Utah parenting bloggers Ruby Franke and Jodi Hildebrandt’s bizarre and pricey online “counseling.”
Franke, a 43-year-old mother of six, and Hildebrandt, a 55-year-old mother of two, ran a joint parenting and lifestyle YouTube channel called ConneXions Classrooms before they were arrested and pleaded guilty to four of six counts of second-degree aggravated child abuse in a St. George courtroom in December 2023.
“Franke, Hildebrandt, and others known and unknown have been engaging in a widespread racketeering enterprise in pursuit of power and profit through the advertisement, sale, and provision of fraudulent services and products designed to prey on vulnerable individuals, and encourage victims to perpetuate illegal acts onto others,” a complaint states.
Utah authorities filed charges against Franke and Hildebrandt in September after police rescued two of Franke’s children, who were malnourished and neglected, from Hildebrandt’s home Aug. 30. The abuse included forcing her children to do physical labor, restricting food, binding one child’s hands and feet and emotional harm. Franke and Hildebrandt told Franke’s children they were evil and needed to be punished.
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One of Hildebrandt’s neighbors reported the abuse to police after Franke’s 12-year-old showed up on his doorstep asking for help. He had escaped from Hildebrandt’s multimillion-dollar house, where he was staying while his mother was away.
Prior to ConneXions Classrooms, Franke ran her own parenting vlog, or video blog, on social media called 8Passengers, representing herself, her husband and their six children. When her blog became the subject of scrutiny after fans began noticing cruel behavior toward her children, she joined Hildebrandt, and the pair became business partners.
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Michael Tillerman is the plaintiff in the lawsuit filed in federal court against Franke and Hildebrandt last month. The complaint describes their ConneXions Classrooms business as an “organized criminal enterprise.”
Tillerman said his former spouse “sought Hildebrandt for routine counseling.”
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In dozens of YouTube videos and social media posts, Franke and Hildebrandt coached parents in calm voices from a living room couch on how to raise their children in “truth.” In a video posted just before their arrests, Hildebrandt said pain can be a good thing for children of a certain age.
Franke’s oldest daughter, Shari Franke, described Hildebrandt and her inner circle as a “cult” in her new memoir, “The House of My Mother.”
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Hildebrandt and Franke advertised and sold “counseling services, classes, workshops, lessons, and digital and written materials” that cost anywhere from $20 to more than $10,000. Tillerman’s lawsuit alleges these products were “fraudulent.”
“Plaintiff has suffered at least $1,066,856 in lost earning potential as a result of the unlawful acts and fraudulent scheme of the Enterprise.”
For example, a “Team Leadership Training Program” that cost nearly $5,000 included “six team sessions, group trainings, podcasts, online trainers, phone call support, and pre- and post-assessment surveys.”
A “Company Leadership Training” that cost triple that at $14,985 included “six team sessions, six manager sessions, six company-wide sessions, eighteen group trainings, podcasts, access to online trainings, phone call support, and pre- and post-assessment surveys.”
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One-on-one training with Hildebrandt cost $181 per 50-minute session. Male and female “teams” sessions cost $300 per month with a minimum $900 commitment.
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Defendants “prey on individuals in vulnerable positions who are seeking legitimate mental health services and indoctrinate members into the Enterprise — instructing her associates to perpetuate child abuse, child torture, and psychological abuse on any individual in their lives not deemed to be in what Hildebrandt has coined ‘Truth,’ i.e., aligning with Hildebrandt’s will,” the complaint states.
Tillerman alleges his spouse “masterfully implemented” Hildebrandt’s and Franke’s “dark teachings to physically abuse and endanger the minor child” they shared.
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Franke and Hildebrandt did not have attorneys listed in the federal lawsuit at the time of publication.
They were both sentenced to serve four consecutive terms between a minimum of 30 years and a maximum of 60 years in prison after being found guilty of four counts each of second-degree aggravated child abuse each inflicted upon two of Franke’s children.
