The world is waiting for the parents who allegedly starved, tortured and abused their 13 children to face court today, five days after their 17-year-old daughter escaped through a window and called police on Sunday morning.
In a press conference held before the hearing, the Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin laid out the charges against David Turpin, 57, and Louise Turpin, 49 who they say kept their children locked in doors, chained to beds, and only allowed them to shower once a year.
They are charged with 13 counts of torture; one lewd act on a child; seven counts of abuse of a dependent adult; six counts of child abuse; and 12 counts of false imprisonment.
The couple has pleaded not guilty. Hestrin said more charges will be added if further evidence comes to light and, as it stands, the Turpins are facing 94 years to life in prison for their alleged crimes.
Hestrin looked grim as he detailed the extent of the couple’s alleged abuse. Their children range in age between two and 29, however all are extremely malnourished and facing severe health problems because of the torture they suffered. The 17-year-old who called for help, for example, was presumed to be 10 years old by the responding police officers.
“The abuse and neglect intensified over time,” Hestrin said, WVNS 59News reports. He added the mistreatment worsened after the family moved to California from their former home in Texas.
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“All the victims were and are severely malnourished – to the point of muscle deterioration. Several of the victims have cognitive impairment and neuropathy, which is nerve damage as a result of extreme and negative abuse.”
The 29-year-old female victim currently weights 37kg, Hestrin said. He continued:
“None of the victims were allowed to shower more than once a year. One of the reasons for the punishments they suffered – being chained to a bed, beaten and strangled – was if the children were found to wash their hands above the wrist area. Then, they were accused of “playing in the water” and they would be chained up.”
Alongside the direct abuse and torture, Hestrin said there were psychological taunts to keep the children desperate. They weren’t allowed to play with toys, for example, but the house was littered with many toys in their original packaging and unopened.
The same was seen with food:
“When they were not chained up, they were locked in different rooms and fed very little on a schedule,” Hestrin said. “The parents would apparently buy food for themselves and not allow the children to eat it. They would buy pies – apple pies, pumpkin pies – and leave them out on the counter. Letting the children look at the food but not eat it.”
Officers raided the house in the small city of Perris, about 113 km east of Los Angeles, on Sunday after the 17-year-old, whose name was not released, called the 911 emergency number.
Hestrin said the teenager had spent two years planning the escape with her siblings. When she eventually fled the house, one of her siblings joined her but became too frightened and went back home.
Hestrin said that to avoid being caught, the parents made their children sleep all day and stay awake all night, often going to bed between 4-5am.
The siblings hadn't seen a doctor in four years, and they had never seen a dentist. Authorities say they did not know what medication was. Some, also, did not even know what a police officer was.
On Wednesday afternoon, several investigators, some wearing black gloves, went in and out of the house, frequently carrying boxes and bags of material they placed in waiting vehicles. "The whole house is a crime scene," Riverside Sheriff's Deputy Mike Vasquez told AAP.
The most resounding question surrounding the case is why? Except for the single charge against David Turpin of a "lewd act against a minor", none of the charges appear sexually motivated.
What purpose did these two parents, who claimed to be Christians, have to deprive their children so horrifically?
Hestrin didn't have an answer, but he did say this: "I will tell you that as a prosecutor there are cases that stick with you and haunt you. Sometimes in this business, we are faced with looking at human depravity and that is what we are looking at here."
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Top Comments
I can't believe people can be so incredibly evil, there are cases that many of us as therapists see & hear about, our world is in many ways broken this includes many families within our society. But this case really got to me, like the prosecutor said there are cases that stick with you. After reading what these people put their own children through, then having the audacity "to plead not guilty." It makes very little sense it's clear to see that the lawyers, prosecutors & social workers etc will have a tough time with it as especially if they are parents themselves. The parents behaviour & neglect have not only deprived these adults & children of their liberty for a long time, but also the necessary nutritional levels & requirements of human life. It's gobsmacking that a 29 year old female should only weigh in at 37 kilos, how does someone survive that long on this low a weight, especially a young female adult? It may also be concerning for the medical professionals not only through the neurological & physical damage this long term starvation would have caused, also their bodies would most likely have had to shut necessary systems down. I also wonder what life these children may have even now that they've been found & taken into a safe environment. It concerning that there is high likelihood of the long term psychological damage, let alone the physical problems that will inevitably stem from this treatment.
I shared a house for a short time with a woman who was part of "the family" in Victoria as a child. There were real issues due to her lack of social skills & awareness around boundaries, as I understand it she was one of the few of her "family group" that was seen as relatively "normal," and was thought to come out "relatively" unscathed, from what I know most of this woman's mistreatment was psychological rather than deprivation of the necessities of life, they still had interactions with their "siblings." Though they did move them from place to place & taught them to fear outsiders. Her "sister" occasionally visited & it was clear that though she had, had a child, she mentally didn't have the capacity to deal with being a parent.
This to me is heartbreaking that parents can do such callous & evil things to their own children, when really they should have put their hands up & asked for help from the department of welfare, yes some or all of the kids would've have most likely been removed, but if they had done something prior to the move to the current home, they may have been able to salvage or retain some of their family unit, with the older ones more able to be independent of their family.
The other thing that is concerning that with the long periods of low weight & starvation that some of the female children may have not started to menstruate so they may not be able to have children, just due to this particular problem which was first found out in young gymnasts in the 70's & 80's.
It's still nonsensical to me why the parents think that by pleading not guilty that it will help their case. The thing I found bizarre is that if the couple was having issues around paying for the amount of food to feed them then why not let the older ones leave home & earn their own $$$'s surely that would have alleviated this part of the burden of having such a large family..
It sounds like the parents might have psychological problem(s), that may be having a lot of children one after the after could of caused I personally don't know of any disorder that would (in)directly cause this, but anything's possible. I would imagine this amount of children would bring a whole truckload of stress that those that have never had any or only have had a few could comprehend. I would humbly suggest though (having never had children myself) something very real & really awful may have happened along the way & something has "broken" inside of either or both of this couple.
I just in my heart of hearts hope that these youngsters get at least some sort of shot at a decent, fulfilling life. Personally, I wonder if the couple are more concerned at the amount of jail time that they are looking at rather than admitting their fault in this heartbreaking & truly evil treatment of these young & vulnerable children.