DaddyOFive couple famous for YouTube prank videos charged with child neglect
Michael and Heather Martin face two charges of mistreating two of their five children between November 2016 and April 2017
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Your support makes all the difference.A couple who are famous for their videos on the YouTube channel “DaddyOFive” have been charged with child neglect.
Michael and Heather Martin from Maryland face two charges of mistreating two of their five children between November 2016 and April 2017.
Their YouTube channel, which has amassed more than 700,000 subscribers, is dedicated to prank videos, many of which involve their children.
Stephen Tully, their attorney, confirmed a plea agreement had been reached but declined to provide details, the Frederick News Post reported.
Some of the videos have been highlighted as crossing the line and being "abusive". In one in particular the children play a game in which the penalty results in one child slapping the other.
In another, they accuse one child, named Cody, of a range of bad behaviour and then proceed to punish him physically and emotionally for it.
The couple have removed many of the prank videos and posted a clip issuing an apology. They have also said their children participated willingly and the pranks were harmless.
“What started out as family fun and entertainment took on a life of its own. Before we knew it, we were caught-up in our family's popularity which led to some poor decisions,” the description of the apology video says.
“Upon reflection, we realise there were mistakes made that caused our family some pain; we offer our most humble and sincere apology to those we negatively impacted and offended, particularly our wonderful children. Our children are safe.
“Off camera and out of character, they are normal, happy kids who play sports and love being with their family and friends,” it adds.
Ms Martin explained the revenue generated from the videos allowed them to provide more for their children and the popularity of the videos meant they kept pushing boundaries to increase the shock factor.
The Martins will attend a plea hearing on 11 September and the maximum possible sentence is five years in prison and a $5,000 (£3,850) fine.
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