As they announced charges that could send David and Louise Turpin to prison for life, prosecutors described a gruesome years-long nightmare of allegedly imprisoning, beating and psychologically tormenting their children.
The charges included: 12 counts of torture; 1 count of lewd act on a child against Mr Turpin; 7 counts of abuse of a dependent; 6 counts of child abuse; and 12 counts of false imprisonment. If convicted on all counts, they face 94 years to life in prison. While the Turpins have 13 children, prosecutors said they were not charging them for treatment of the youngest, a 2-year-old.
Both Turpins pleaded “not guilty” to all charges in a brief court appearance on Thursday.
Below are some of the allegations that Riverside District Attorney Mike Hestrin described at a press conference.
They were shackled with ropes and then chains
Initially, the children were bound with ropes — but when one escaped, the parents began to use chains and padlocks, Mr Hestrin said, often not freeing the children to use the bathroom.
Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents
15 show all Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents
1/15 David and Louise Turpin with their 13 children who were being held captive by their parents in the family home in Perris, California. Facebook
2/15 Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin speaks during a press conference announcing charges against David Turpin and Louise Turpin in relation to their 13 malnourished children found chained in their home, in Riverside. The two parents were charged with multiple counts of Child abuse, torture, abuse of dependent adults and false imprisonment and could face close to 100 years to life in prison if convicted. EPA
3/15 The home of David Allen and Louise Anna Turpin, where some of their children were bound with chains and padlocks. Reuters
4/15 David Allen Turpin poses for a mugshot after being arrested. Riverside County Sheriffs Department via Getty
5/15 One of the captives, a 17-year-old girl, escaped over the weekend and notified the Riverside Sheriff’s Department. Facebook/David-Louise Turpin
6/15 Perris residents watch as media gather in front of Turpin family home. The Sheriff's deparmtent said "the parents were unable to immediately provide a logical reason why their children were restrained in that manner." AFP/Getty
7/15 The children were found in dark and foul-smelling surroundings and "The victims appeared to be malnourished and very dirty,” the department said. Facebook/David-Louise Turpin
8/15 Neighbours stand outside the home. Getty
9/15 Louise Anna Turpin poses for a mugshot after being arrested. Not all of their victims were children: of the 13 victims, seven were between the age of 18 and 29, according to the Sheriff's Department. Riverside County Sheriffs Department via Getty
10/15 David and Louise Turpin in 2015. Authorities arrested them on torture and child endangerment charges, setting bail at $9m (£6.5m) apiece. Facebook/David-Louise Turpin
11/15 David Turpin and Louise Turpin appear in court for their arraignment in Riverside Reuters
12/15 David Allen Turpin and his wife, Louise Anna Turpin celebrate a renewal of their wedding vows with Elvis impersonator Kent Ripley in Las Vegas in 2011 A Elvis Chapel via AP
13/15 David Allen Turpin appears in court for his arraignment in Riverside. Prosecutors filed 12 counts of torture, seven counts of dependent adult abuse, six counts of child abuse and 12 counts of false imprisonment against Turpin and his wife, Louise Anna Turpin. The Press-Enterprise via AP
14/15 Neighbour Liza Tozier, and her son, Avery Sanchez, 6, drop off his large "Teddy" as a gift for the children. AP
15/15 Louise Turpin appears in court for her arraignment in Riverside. Authorities say the abuse left the children malnourished, undersized and with cognitive impairments. Reuters
“These punishments would last for weeks or even months at a time,” he said.
When not chained to beds, he alleged, the children were locked away in separate rooms.
The parents set out toys and food they couldn't eat
Many of the children appeared to severely malnourished, with a 29-year-old weighing a mere 82 pounds, Mr Hestrin said.
But the parents would tempt them with food, including setting out pies that they could not eat.
Similarly, the house was strewn with toys still in their packaging despite evidence that the children were never allowed to play with toys, Mr Hestrin said.
David and Louise Turpin renew their wedding vows at Elvis Chapel in 2013
They were punished for washing their hands too much
One of the behaviours that could incur punishment — which could include beatings and strangulation in addition to being chained up — was when the children washed their hands above the wrists, which would lead the parents to accuse them “playing in the water,” Mr Hestrin said.
Hygiene for the children was poor, Mr Hestrin said, with the parents allowing them to shower no more than once a year.
They were deprived of medical care
It appeared that none of the children had ever been to a dentist, Mr Hestrin said, and that they hadn’t been taken to a doctor in more than four years.
*They had little knowledge of the outside world*
The family homeschooled its children and adhered to a schedule of sleeping all day and being active all night, Mr Hestrin said, helping to limit their contact with others.
As a result, they appeared to be ignorant about the world outside their alleged prison. Asked whether there were medications or pills in the house, one sibling evidently did not know what either one was; it seemed possible they “didn’t know what a police officer was,” Mr Hestrin said.
THE 'house of horrors' couple who kept their 13 children imprisoned in squalid conditions allegedly tortured 12 of them - but left their two-year-old in perfect health.
David Turpin, 57, and wife Louise, 49, were arrested after the siblings, aged between two and 29, were found shackled and emaciated at the family home in Perris, California.
AP:Associated Press Louise Turpin, one half the couple accused of torturing and imprisoning their children, smiles in court
David Allen Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna Turpin, 49, were arrested and each charged with nine counts of torture and ten counts of child endangerment
The parents of 13 siblings who were found shackled to their beds have pleaded not guilty to charges of abuse, torture and imprisonment
Dressed all in black with their hands and legs shackled, the pair appeared calm as they submitted not-guilty pleas to 12 counts of torture, 12 of false imprisonment, six of child abuse and six of abuse of a dependent adult, before a packed courtroom.
Louise Turpin was seen smirking in court, which heard how only their two-year-old child was spared from cruel torture.
David Turpin was also charged with performing a lewd act on a child under age 14. Each faces 94 years to life in prison if convicted on the more than two dozen charges that include torture, child abuse, dependent adult abuse and false imprisonment.
Judge Michael Donner ordered each defendant to remain held on $12 million bail and set the next hearing in the case for February 23.
THE SHOCKING CLAIMS FROM COURT...
David and Louise Turpin allegedly began shackling their children with padlocks and chains after one of them escaped from rope ties
They would sometimes be chained up for months and were forbidden from showering more than once a year
The children were used to frequent beatings
Evidence of human waste on the floor indicated the children were prevented from using the toilet
The children would be beaten if they washed their hands "above the wrist" because it amounted to them "playing in the water"
They were not allowed to play with toys, though many were found throughout the house in their original packaging
The kids would be starved while their parents ate well, even taunting them by letting them see apple and pumpkin pies they weren't allowed to have
They were made to stay awake all night and sleep all day - often going to bed just before dawn - in a suspected attempt to avoid outsiders witnessing the abuse
At one point while the couple lived in Texas, the parents lived in a separate house from most of the children and dropped off food to the others from time to time
The children never received dental care, and they had not seen a doctor in more than four years. When the girl who escaped was asked if any pills were in the home, she did not understand what medication was
The children also did not know who a police officer was
The only child safe from their torture was their two-year-old, who showed no signs of malnutrition
One of the only things the children were allowed to do was to write in their journals and investigators are combing through hundreds as evidence
AFP or licensors Louise, pictured, and husband David face 12 counts of torture, 12 of false imprisonment, six of child abuse and six of abuse of a dependent adult
Reuters Louise Turpin, pictured in court, appeared calm as she submitted a not-guilty plea before a packed courtroom
AP:Associated Press Dressed all in black with his hands and legs shackled, David Allen Turpin, 57, appeared in court today
AP:Associated Press Louise Anna Turpin, left, with her attorney Jeff Moore, and her husband David Allen Turpin, second from right, in court where they denied charges of abuse and torture of their 13 children
Prosecutors say Turpin California siblings found chained up by planned escape forc
The torture and false imprisonment charges, dating back to 2010 when the couple moved from outside Fort Worth, Texas, to Riverside County, do not include the two-year-old.
Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin, who announced the charges at a press conference ahead of their court appearance, said: "What started out as neglect became severe, pervasive, prolonged child abuse."
He told reporters the 17-year-old girl, who managed to escape and alert police on Sunday, had plotted to escape with her siblings for two years and that another girl, who escaped with her out the window, had turned back in fear.
Mr Hestrin did not say what finally triggered the teen girl to act.
AP:Associated Press
Louise Turpin laughed as she spoke with her attorney at the hearing on Thursday
Reuters David Turpin was also charged with committing a lewd act against a child by force or fear or duress
Aunt of 13 kids chained up in California house of horrors, Elizabeth Jane Flores, says their father David Turpin 'watched me in the shower'
Reuters The shocking case has sparked headlines around the world
Police say the 13 children were taken to hospital for treatment after claiming to be 'starving'
Video of Turpin family home where Disney-obsessed parents shackled their 13 children
He said the children were deprived of food, while the parents ate well and even taunted them by letting them see apple and pumpkin pies they weren't allowed to have.
The children's malnutrition was allegedly so severe that it had stunted growth and led to cognitive impairment and nerve damage with the oldest child - a 29-year-old woman - weighing just under six stone (37kg).
The prosecutor said the children had been chained to their beds for months at a time and were forbidden from showering more than once a year or using the toilet.
Some of the 13 children had been isolated so long they did not know what a police officer was.
Supplied as a technical service. No is implied or inferred. The couple have denied 12 counts of torture, 12 of false imprisonment, six of child abuse and six of abuse of a dependent
David and Louise Turpin, arrested after 13 of their children were found shackled to beds, renew their vows at Elvis Chapel in Las Vegas
There was no indication that either suffered from mental illness, Perris police chief Greg Fellows said, or that the children's ordeal was linked to the family's religious beliefs.
Initial investigations have confirmed that the couple were the biological parents of all 13 siblings.
It comes as a law enforcement official with knowledge of the case also told NBC News the rooms inside the brown-and-beige four-bedroom house were filled with urine.
The broadcaster also reported that the kids are now receiving antibiotics, vitamins and nutrients and doctors are concerned about them going into shock from being malnourished.
What we know so far:
David Allen Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna Turpin, 49, were arrested after cops found their 13 kids chained up in "dark and foul-smelling surrounds"
The siblings, who cops said were “very dirty”, were so malnourished that officers thought seven adults were CHILDREN
The starving kids begged police for food when they were found shackled to their beds
At court on Thursday, the parents pleaded not guilty to charges of torture and child endangerment
David Turpin was also charged with performing a lewd act on a child under age 14
The alarm was raised when one of their children, a 17-year-old girl, escaped and called the police
One neighbour said the Turpins reminded her of the family of vampires from the Twilight book and film series
Meanwhile, the grandparents of 13 starved children say their son’s family looked happy and healthy when they last visited California six years ago.
“They were just like any ordinary family,” said Betty Turpin, the 81-year-old mother of David Turpin.
"And they had such good relationships. I’m not just saying this stuff.
"These kids, we were amazed. They were ‘sweetie’ this and ‘sweetie’ that to each other."
The 17-year-old daughter who raised the alarm told cops she was terrified they would kill her if she got caught.
She climbed out of a window to alert police of her and her 12 siblings dire plight and was so malnourished cops told a press conference she physically appears more like a 10-year-old.
Reuters The girl is said to have jumped from a window to alert police
Riverside County Sheriff’s Department Louise Anna Turpin was arrested on Sunday evening by police in Perris, California
Riverside County Sheriff’s Department David Allen Turpin, pictured in a police mugshot, released by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department
Riverside County sheriff's Capt. Greg Fellows said: "The conditions were horrific.
"If you can imagine being 17 years old and appearing to be a 10-year-old, being chained to a bed, being malnourished, and injuries associated with that, I would call that torture."
It was reported earlier the children were only fed once a day and could only take two showers a YEAR.
According to The Mirror the starving teen was in fear for her life when she finally broke free and alerted the police.
Getty Images - Getty Horrified neighbours took to the streets in disbelief after details of the horror story emerged overnight
Media swarms California home where 13 siblings rescued from parents after being found 'shackled to beds'
She snuck out of a window of the unassuming family home at around 6am on Sunday, fleeing to safety before using the deactivated phone she took from the house to call 911.
After the phone call, cops raced to the scene and stunned residents has they led the troop of terrified kids out of the bungalow in the typical suburban street.
The conditions inside were said to be "horrific" with the victims given little access to food or water.
Neighbours have told how they would rarely see the children – with one claiming to have been unaware there were any living at the house.
Reuters Police were called to Muir Woods Road in Perris, California, after a teenager claimed her siblings were being held there on Sunday
most read in news 'don't back out' Ex-pole dancer who made suicide pact with postie and let him die is jailed PALACE TREASURES Relics dating back to Queen Victoria's reign found in Buckingham Palace evil mum Turpin girl who raised alarm planned escape for TWO YEARS as mum smirks in court BEYOND THE GRAVE Dead mum, 33, 'gives birth to stillborn baby ten days AFTER her death' 'I THOUGHT I'D LOST HIM' Mum calls for marshmallow ban after toddler chokes on one in Costa
Police say Louise was "perplexed" about why authorities had arrived at their home.
Mr Turpin’s parents James and Betty, who live in West Virginia, added that their son and his wife are "deeply religious" and believed God had "called on them" to keep conceiving.
They told ABC News the children were given "very strict homeschooling" but thought when they visited they seemed like a "happy family".
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THE daughter who fled from the California 'house of horrors' and raised the alarm about her shackled siblings had planned her escape for two years, it has emerged.
The girl, 17, escaped from the family home in Perris and alerted cops, who arrived to free her 12 brothers and sisters, who were chained inside.
The couple are pictured with their 13 kids, who they allegedly tortured and abused
Parents David Allen Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna Turpin, 49, were arrested and charged with torture, false imprisonment and child abuse – charges they deny.
And it has now emerged the hero teen who freed her siblings plotted her escape for two years.
The girl told cops she was terrified her mum and dad would kill her if she got caught.
She climbed out of a window to escape the house along with her sister – who turned back out of fear, leaving her to go it alone.
AFP or licensors Louise Anna Turpin, 49, laughs as she speaks to her lawyer in court yesterday
Reuters David Turpin and his wife pleaded not guilty to the charges against them
The couple are accused of torturing all their kids apart from their two-year-old
Aunt of 13 kids chained up in California house of horrors, Elizabeth Jane Flores, says their father David Turpin 'watched me in the shower'
But the teen persisted and managed to contact authorities, who descended on the house.
The 17-year-old was so malnourished officers said they initially thought her to be no older than ten.
When sheriff's deputies arrived Sunday at the four-bedroom house they were appalled.
They found a 22-year-old chained to a bed and a house that reeked and contained human waste, indicating the children were prevented from using the toilet, authorities said.
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, Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin said.
THE SHOCKING CLAIMS FROM COURT...
David and Louise Turpin allegedly began shackling their children with padlocks and chains after one of them escaped from rope ties
They would sometimes be chained up for months and were forbidden from showering more than once a year
The children were used to frequent beatings
Evidence of human waste on the floor indicated the children were prevented from using the toilet
The children would be beaten if they washed their hands "above the wrist" because it amounted to them "playing in the water"
They were not allowed to play with toys, though many were found throughout the house in their original packaging
The kids would be starved while their parents ate well, even taunting them by letting them see apple and pumpkin pies they weren't allowed to have
They were made to stay awake all night and sleep all day - often going to bed just before dawn - in a suspected attempt to avoid outsiders witnessing the abuse
At one point while the couple lived in Texas, the parents lived in a separate house from most of the children and dropped off food to the others from time to time
The children never received dental care, and they had not seen a doctor in more than four years. When the girl who escaped was asked if any pills were in the home, she did not understand what medication was
The couple are pictured smiling as they renew their wedding vows
Reuters Reporters gathered outside the family home in Perris, California, this week
Refer to Caption
Shocking details of the alleged abuse suffered by the kids has emerged
Inside the former home in North Texas of The Turpin family accused of 'torturing 13 children'
Shocking details have since emerged of the torments allegedly suffered by the 13 siblings at the hands of their parents.
Hestrin said the couple taunted their starving kids with food while they ate well.
He claimed the pair let their 13 kids see apple and pumpkin pies they weren't allowed to have as they wasted away – with the family’s dogs allegedly fed better, according to another report.
They were forbidden from showering more than once a year and would be punished if they washed their hands "above the wrist" because it amounted to them "playing in the water", it is alleged.
Reuters David Allen Turpin, 57, was sullen as he appeared in court to deny the charges
Reuters Louise Turpin is pictured in court after she and her husband were arrested
David and Louis Turpin are pictured with their kids during a trip to Disneyland
Most read in news 'don't back out' Ex-pole dancer who made suicide pact with postie and let him die is jailed PALACE TREASURES Relics dating back to Queen Victoria's reign found in Buckingham Palace BEYOND THE GRAVE Dead mum, 33, 'gives birth to stillborn baby ten days AFTER her death' 'I THOUGHT I'D LOST HIM' Mum calls for marshmallow ban after toddler chokes on one in Costa DEPRAVED House of horrors couple 'tortured 12 kids but left two-year-old in perfect health'
The children – whose names all begin with J in a chilling echo of reality TV family the Kardashians – never received dental care, and they had not seen a doctor in more than four years, it is claimed.
David and Louise Turpin appeared in court yesterday to plead not guilty to a string of charges which could see them jailed for between 94 years and life if they are convicted.
The mum was pictured smirking as she chatted with her lawyer, while the dad looked more sullen.
Judge Michael Donner ordered each defendant to remain held on $12million (£8.7million) bail and set the next hearing in the case for February 23.
Video of Turpin family home where Disney-obsessed parents shackled their 13 children
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(CNN) Chained to their beds for weeks at a time. Showered once a year. Beaten and starved. Officials say life for the Turpin family's 13 children was one of extreme horror and abuse.
"Sometimes in this business we're faced with looking at human depravity," Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin said at a news conference on Thursday. "And that's what we're looking at."
Hestrin revealed the conditions that forced a 17-year-old girl to escape earlier this week through the window of her parents' Perris, California, home, seeking help for herself and her 12 siblings, ranging in age from 2 to 29. She had reportedly been working on her escape plan for more than two years.
Hestrin painted a bleak picture -- what he called "a snapshot" -- of the inside of the Turpin family home, previously described as "dark and foul-smelling."
These are the conditions authorities say they endured.
Punished with chains and padlocks
According to officials, the alleged abuse seems to have intensified over time, starting when the Turpins lived near Fort Worth, Texas.
The Turpin children were often tied up for "weeks or even months at a time," Hestrin told a roomful of reporters on Thursday.
The victims told investigators the practice started as punishment many years ago, Hestrin said. Initially, the children were tied up with ropes, but when one victim, who was hogtied, escaped, the Turpins turned to chains and padlocks, Hestrin said.
To the Turpins, it was "a form of punishment," Hestrin said in the news conference. The children were often left shackled to their beds for "weeks or even months at a time," he said.
"Circumstantial evidence in the house suggests that the victims were often not released from their chains to go to the bathroom," Hestrin added.
Police say several of the victims were still chained to the beds when police arrived at the Turpin residence on Sunday, though the parents tried to release them.
Denied showers and medical care
The Turpins allegedly denied their children what most people would view as basic human rights.
The victims were allowed to shower once a year, according to the district attorney. They were apparently allowed to wash their hands, but if they "were found to have washed their hands above the wrist area, they were accused of playing in the water," Hestrin said.
David and Louise Turpin are seen in booking photos released by the Riverside County Sheriff's Department.
This was one of the offenses the Turpins allegedly deemed punishable, and the child would be chained to their bed.
The Turpins, Hestrin said, also fed their children "very little on a schedule." The parents would buy food for themselves, but their kids weren't allowed to eat it. Instead, Hestrin said, "they would buy food, including pies -- apple pies, pumpkin pies -- leave it on the counter, let the children look at it, but not eat the food."
According to the district attorney, only the youngest, a 2-year-old, was getting enough to eat. But the child's siblings, because of the abuse and neglect, are severely malnourished and have cognitive impairment as a result, Hestrin said.
As for health care, none of the children has seen a doctor in more than four years, Hestrin said, and none of them had ever seen a dentist. When questioned by police, the 17-year-old who escaped made it clear she didn't even know what "medication or pills" were.
Kept isolated and starved
If the children weren't chained, then they were locked inside different rooms within the house. There were no toys in those rooms, or stuffed animals, despite the fact that plenty of toys were found inside the house in their original packaging, according to Hestrin.
The only thing the children were allowed to do while inside their rooms was write in journals, hundreds of which have been recovered by authorities, Hestrin said. They will be looked through for evidence in the case against the Turpins.
Apparently nocturnal, the family wouldn't go to sleep until 4 or 5 a.m., Hestrin said, and they would sleep all day.
When asked if this was an attempt by the Turpins to conceal their actions, Hestrin said, "You know, crimes like these happen behind closed doors, in dark rooms, and so of course people who commit these types of crimes have to hide their crimes, and I think that was part of it."
As a result of their isolation, Hestrin said "the children lack a basic knowledge of life." When the police came to rescue them, he said, many of the victims didn't even know what a police officer was.
