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The Curious Case Of… Jodi Hildebrandt documented the series of crimes reportedly committed by the former YouTuber and businesswoman. Hildebrandt was a licensed counselor in Utah who started as a psychiatrist for s*xual and p*rnographic addiction.
She founded her individual counseling business ConneXions in 2007, based in Orem, Utah. The subject of The Curious Case Of... Jodi Hildebrandt then partnered with family YouTuber Ruby Franke. The two women then started their own YouTube podcast and Instagram channel where they provided relationship and parenting counseling.
However, soon after they started the channel, viewers seemingly began to see Jodi's other side as she was found guilty of child torture and abuse. The Curious Case Of… episode 5 narrated all the events that led to exposing Jodi Hildebrandt's business and her criminal conviction on multiple charges.
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The official synopsis of episode 5 of The Curious Case Of..., released on February 10, 2025, reads:
Meet a little girl with a big heart RIGHT HERE
"Therapist Jodi Hildebrandt's crusade against m*sturbation drives a wedge between couples in crisis; she forms a dark alliance with Mormon mommy vlogger Ruby Franke, but a horrifying 911 call exposes the depths of their bizarre beliefs."
The Curious Case Of… episode 5: What is the story of Jodi Hildebrandt?
The subject of The Curious Case Of… episode 5, Jodi Hildebrandt was born June 15, 1969, and grew up in Tuscon, Arizona, in a devout Christian family.
As per a Business Insider article, the subject of The Curious Case Of… started practicing as a licensed psychiatrist and counselor in 2005. Two years later, she went on to establish her Utah-based therapy and counseling business named ConneXions. Through her business, Hildebrant provided psychological treatments to patients suffering from s*x and p*rnography addiction.
An article by People, published in February 2025, The Curious Case Of… episode subject Jodi's license was suspended in 2012. This was after she was found guilty of exposing her patient's confidential information.
She was put on probation for 18 months after it was discovered that she revealed a client's personal information. Additionally, she was also accused of sharing confidential information about a client with the Birmingham Young University and the Mormon Church between 2008 and 2009. Hildebrandt and her parents were members of the Church but the Mormon Church announced that she was no longer a member after the accusations were made public.
According to the February 2025 People article, in 2019, Jodi partnered with the family YouTuber Ruby Franke, who had a channel named 8 Passengers. The Curious Case Of... Jodi Hildebrandt depicted how the channel helped Ruby gain fame in 2015.
After Ruby Franke separated from her husband, Kevin Franke, the couple sought counseling from Hildebrandt's company, ConneXions. In 2019, Ruby and Jodi partnered with each other and the former joined Hildebrandt's podcast, ConneXions, as a co-host.
The Curious Case Of… episode 5: Jodi Hildebrandt and Rube Franke were found guilty of child abuse
As per a BBC article, Hildebrandt and Ruby opened a joint Instagram account named Moms of Truth, where they provided parenting classes. Ruby was separated from her husband, Kevin, and in May 2023, she and her youngest children moved into Hildebrandt's residence, in Ivins, Utah.
However, the two allegedly began inflicting violence on Franke's children and reportedly tortured the children by using cayenne pepper and honey on their wounds. Authorities also reported that the children weren't given enough food and were forced to work for hours at a time.
According to another People article from December 2023, Franke reportedly forced her 12-year-old son's head underwater, restricting his breathing.
The article also reported that Franke's 10-year-old daughter was forced to walk barefoot on dirt roads. It noted that Ruby would restrict her children's food as a form of punishment, which was shown in The Curious Case Of… episode 5.
An ABC News from December 2023, reported that police in Washington County, Utah arrested Franke and Hildebrandt on August 30, 2023. As shown in The Curious Case Of… episode 5, the women were charged with aggravated child abuse, and soon, the case garnered national attention.
As per the ABC article, Ruby Franke went on to plead guilty to her charges at the Washington County 5th District Court in Utah. In court, she said that she had the "deepest regret and sorrow" for her family and children, as she pleaded guilty.
Franke's attorney stated that she wanted to "take responsibility for the harm she has caused to her children and her entire family."
"She knows that by pleading guilty and accepting the punishment, she is taking a step in the right direction to be accountable for her actions," her lawyer added.
The two women were arrested after Franke's son from a window at Hildebrandt's residence and explained what had happened to him to one of their neighbors. The neighbor called the police to report the abuse which led to the arrests of Ruby and Jodi, which was shown on episode 5 of The Curious Case Of… Jodi Hildebrandt.
As per the People article, Shari, Ruby Franke's eldest daughter, expressed her relief, on social media, after her mother was sentenced. In an Instagram post, she wrote that she and her family were "glad" that justice was served.
“We've been trying to tell the police and CPS for years about this, and so glad they finally decided to step up,” Shari wrote.
Both women were found guilty and sentenced to four terms, 1 year to a maximum of 15 years in prison as per Utah's law, according to an article by the BBC. Jodi Hildebrandt is serving her sentence at the Utah State Correctional Facility. Meanwhile, Ruby Franke's four youngest children were taken under the custody of Utah’s Division of Child and Family Services.
To know more details about Jodi Hildebrant and Ruby Franke, watch The Curious Case Of… Jodi Hildebrandt. All the episodes of The Curious Case Of… are available for streaming on Max.
