AMERICA was shocked by revelations that David and Louise Turpin had shackled 12 of their 13 kids in California.
The two monster parents were jailed for life after pleading guilty to torture and years of abuse – but what do we know about them and their rescued children?
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Who are David Allen Turpin and Louise Anna Turpin?
Twisted David Turpin, then aged 57 and Louise, 50, were given 25 years to life behind bars for the hideous abuse and imprisonment of their kids.
The pair were nabbed in January 2018, and later pleaded guilty to abusing and imprisoning their children in their Perris home.
The couple’s arrests were made after one of the 13 siblings escaped and called police to say her 12 brothers and sisters were being held captive.
She was so emaciated that cops thought she was ten years old at first, cops said.
The 17-year-old told police some of her siblings were bound with chains and padlocks.
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What did cops find at the California home?
Police said when they arrived at the property in Perris, about 70 miles east of Los Angeles, they found children shackled to their beds in “dark and foul-smelling surrounds”.
The discovery was made on January 14, 2018, in the US state.
A statement from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office said: “Deputies located what they believed to be 12 children inside the house, but were shocked to discover that seven of them were actually adults.
“The victims appeared to be malnourished and very dirty.”
Neighbours told local media they had no idea there were children in the house, while others said they only saw them at night.
The six children were transported to the Riverside University Hospital System (RUHS) for medical examinations and admitted for treatment.
The seven adult children were taken to Corona Regional Medical Centre for an examination and treatment.
Pictures were later made public which showed an unkempt garden, dirty carpets and doors with scratches on.
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What do we know about Mr and Mrs Turpin?
After the pair’s arrest, pictures emerged of them and their 13 children posing on various day trips.
One showed the couple and the kids at Disneyland, wearing matching T-shirts.
Another showed the Turpins getting married in a Las Vegas style ceremony – complete with Elvis impersonator.
The children were bizarrely gathered around the couple wearing matching dresses and suits.
Each girl had matching hair cuts while all of their brothers sported bowl cuts.
The family was said to be big fans of Disneyland and went on holidays to the theme park.
Some residents said they saw the kids picking up rubbish around their home and digging for food in bins, according to CBS2 News.
Neighbours have also told how they would rarely see the children – with one claiming to have been unaware there were any living at the house.
Andrew Santillan, who lived around the corner, told the Press Enterprise: “I didn’t know there were kids in the house.”
The parents appeared in court on January 18 and initially pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of torture, child abuse, dependent adult abuse and false imprisonment.
Mr Turpin also pleaded not guilty to performing a lewd act on a child under age 14.
Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin said the children were tied to beds with ropes and then hog-tied.
While the children were deprived of food, the Turpin parents ate well and tormented the kids by leaving apple and pumpkin pies on the kitchen counter, but not letting them have any, Hestrin added.
The oldest child, a 29-year-old woman, weighed only 82 pounds and a 12-year-old was the weight of a typical seven-year-old, Hestrin added.
All the children’s names begin with the letter J, according to court documents that didn’t provide their full names.
David Turpin was also charged in May 2018 by a court in California with perjury over his claim he was running a private school for his 13 kids.
In February 2019, the couple pleaded guilty to torture and years of abuse.
They admitted to 14 counts that included cruelty toward all but their toddler daughter, and imprisoning the children in a house festering with filth and reeking of human waste.
The guilty pleas were important to spare the children from testifying, though they will be allowed to speak at the sentencing if they choose, said Hestrin.
In April 2019 a judge sentenced the pair to up to life in prison.
What have the Turpin family said about the couple?
The Turpin sisters Jordan and Jennifer spoke out for the first time on November 19 in an interview with Diane Sawyer. In the interview Jennifer told Diane “I was afraid to do one little thing wrong. If I did one little thing wrong I was going to be beaten. And not just beat, beat until I bled.”
Her sister Jordan, the oldest of the Turpins, recalled similar cruelty, saying her mother once caught her secretly watching a Justin Bieber music video and choked her as punishment.
The family of Louise and David Turpin have also done interviews in the past. In 2018 they spoke to Good Morning Britain of their horror, and revealed Louise hadn’t shown signs of remorse.
Elizabeth Flores, Louise’s younger sister, said: “I actually didn’t know anything. I haven’t seen them since 2010.”
“We were all raised up in a strict Christian home,” she told author John Glatt, for his book The Family Next Door.
Elizabeth recalled David and Louise being extremely strict with their kids.
“They had to ask permission to go to the bathroom. They had to ask permission to eat.”
“We thought [Louise] had the perfect life,” said her half-brother Billy Robinette Jr.
Source: Sun
