Lawmakers debate child torture, West Haven influencer laws and Ruby Franke cases

SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — Utah lawmakers discussed the issue of child abuse, particularly child torture, at committee and subcommittee meetings in the Utah State Capitol Building.

One of the points discussed was child abuse and particularly child torture.

The Interim Committee on Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice discussion lasted approximately 45 minutes and focused primarily on the definition of child torture.

A torture bill was introduced Wednesday after several high-profile cases in the state, including the deaths of 12-year-old Gavin Peterson in West Haven and Ruby Franke’s children in Ivins.

According to Washington District Attorney Eric Clarke, who introduced the bill to the committee, the bill introduced by Sen. Don Ipson would make child torture a crime in its own right and a first-degree felony — while it is currently part of the second-degree felony of aggravated child abuse.

The bill also imposes a minimum sentence of ten years in prison.

“Broken bones heal, burns heal, bruises heal, survivors of child torture will have years, decades, their entire lives to process what happened to them. “Many people don’t do this successfully,” said Dr. Toni Laskey, professor of pediatrics at the University of Utah School of Medicine.

“Before prison is recommended for this crime, someone must have a lengthy criminal history,” Clarke said. “We aggressively pursue these cases and of course seek prison – but the system’s recommendation is so low that we must fight an uphill battle to put child torturers behind bars.”

Some members of the committee took issue with the bill’s language, questioning the definition of “serious psychological injury” and the ability to prosecute a first-degree felony based on what they described as vague language.

When discussing the bill, Senator Kathleen Riebe, who is a teacher, emphasized prevention and recognizing the signs of what people can look for when it comes to child abuse.

The bill passed out of committee by a vote of 14-1.

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Ruby Franke’s eldest daughter, Shari, also spoke before the Interim Committee for Economic Affairs and Labor about the use of social media by minors.

Franke spoke about the phenomenon of family vlogging as a lucrative business. She had powerful words about Utah parents who profit from fame by exposing their daily lives for all to see.

“I want to make it clear that there is never a good reason to put your children online for money or fame,” she said. “There is no such thing as a moral or ethical family vlogger… it became the main source of income for my family.”

Franke spoke about payments to so-called “child influencers”.

“This payment is usually a bribe,” she said. “For example, we would receive a $100 reward or a shopping spree if we filmed a particularly embarrassing moment or exciting event in our lives.”

Franke spoke about what she described as a lack of legal protection for child influencers.

“There is no law that guarantees that child influencers will make money from their work,” she said.

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Jared Turner contributed to this report.