YouTube community calls out 'pranksters' DaddyOFive, police act on it

[My Everything]

 

 

There is an important update on the disturbing case of DaddyOFive, and it involves the YouTube community that mobilised itself to get the story out there.

 

The parents behind DaddyOFive, who came under fire for making what critics describe as gratuitously cruel prank videos on their children, have reportedly lost custody of two kids to their biological mother. 

 

A video shows Rose Hall, the biological mother of Cody, 9, and Emma, 12, with her lawyer saying that she obtained emergency custody of the kids.

 

"They're doing good," Hall says on the video. "They're getting back to their playful selves."

 

 

The lawyer, Tim Conlon of the Custody Place, said the kids are in a "deprogramming sort of mode." 

 

Click here to view the Tweet

 

The two also went on to thank the YouTube community for calling attention to the alleged abuse.

 

Over the past months, DaddyOFive, a.k.a. Mike Martin, and his second wife Heather, caused a backlash within the YouTube community for their pranks, which often targeted the youngest child, Cody.

 

The channel, which has more than 760,000 subscribers, featured videos of Martin convincing Cody he had been adopted out, smashing his X-box with a hammer, and accusing him of pouring ink on the bedroom floor.

 

The latter, posted April 12, sparked a controversy that saw many popular YouTubers calling out Martin.

 

During the prank, the parents swear at Cody for making the mess in his bedroom. When he denies it, they accuse him of lying, causing him to cry.

 

Among the YouTubers that criticised the parents was Philip DeFranco, who, in a video watched by more than 3 million people, edited clips from DaddyOFive to make his points. 

 

 

"Now is this child abuse? I would leave that up to child protective services," he says referring to a video when Mike pushes Cody into a shelf, allegedly causing him to bleed from his nose.

 

"If they've really been called and CPS have said they did nothing wrong — the pushing, the hitting the screaming, putting the kids in these situations, egging them on — if they saw all that, if they've seen all the other things I would personally label emotional abuse."

 

In a response video called "blocking the haters," the Martins denied any abuse had taken place.

 

But they since deleted the videos on their "DaddyOFive" YouTube channel and published a public apology.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WoYTdYRPPpw

 

In an interview aired on Good Morning America, the Martins said they were "ashamed" by their behaviour.

 

"[What] you see on our YouTube channel is not a reflection of who we are. It's not," Heather Martin said. "It's a character. It was a show, a bad show, but it was a show."

 

"I am ashamed," Mike Martin said. "It started out as family fun. It started with me and my kids, but then it was just about making a video and then making the next video more crazier than the next."

 

Police in Baltimore had earlier confirmed they opened an investigation into the Martins.

 

In her video about the emergency custody, Cody and Emma's biological mother thanks Baltimore's Frederik County authority for assisting and retrieving the children.

 

Then, she names the YouTubers who helped getting the story the attention it needed — not only DeFranco, but also Nick Monroe, Based Mama, SuitYourself, and Chambers of my heart.

 

Source

 

 

[HiatusX]

How can you make a show of you humiliating your own children over and over and find that a good idea because it brings in momey?  Even if its fake it's really disgusting to expose your children this way to the world

[delirium]

 

I don't want your sodding apology, give it to you kids mate

 

 

why are they even being interviewed??

[NSFL]

That guy is a dumbass

Also why is there a public apology. No one wants to see your crocodile tears, we just want to see the kids happy and healthy

[양 지]

I'm glad, I helped report too. Like initially I thought YT community and the internet was just overreacting and meddling in others' business again but I checked some of their clips out and it was so shitty how they treated their kids, esp Cody. He begged them to stop harassing him multiple times (crying with a full on red face and everything which hurt me even more) and his step mom legit told him "it's just a prank bruh" or something like that. Plus his dad also pushed him against a shelf dead on like mentioned among other things. So messed up ffs.

 

Hope the kids are able to live happily now.

[HVC's-Octoputhy]

The things people do for subscribers and likes these days smh

[ezgiT]

so cody got saved?

 

finally

[Lil Ayy Big Gay]

They can shove their apology right up their asses.

Child abuse is an inexcusable crime.

 

Glad they got children taken away, especially Cody. He seems like sucha sweetheart.

 

I don't think its faked either, why would Cody say something on the lines of "Why would make me go through this for a prank", that seems like such a weird thing to add onto a script imo

[Moon Jellyfish]

Glad to hear Cody and Emma are with their mom and I hope they get the help they need. I also help the 3 other boys get some type of professional help as well.