The parents of 13 children who police found malnourished and shackled inside of a Perris home were charged with torture, false imprisonment and neglect on Thursday.
David and Louise Turpin were arrested on Sunday after one of their children escaped the house and called 911. Authorities discovered the couple’s 13 children, ages 2 to 29 years old, chained to furniture and malnourished to the point that it stunted their growth.
“Circumstantial evidence in the house suggests that the victims were often not released from their chains to go to their bathroom,” Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin said in a press conference.
Horrific new details emerge in case of 13 captive siblings: None of the victims were allowed to shower more than once a year; punishments included "frequent beatings and even strangulation," prosecutor says. https://t.co/B2UmZte5sl pic.twitter.com/U3uPQSmtrY
— ABC News (@ABC) January 18, 2018
The Turpin’s children told authorities that they began to be tied up as punishment “many years, ago,” first with rope, then with chains and padlocks.
During the press conference, Hestrin claimed the parents would buy food, eat it, and then leave it on the counter – but not allow the children to eat it.
"If convicted of all of these charges as currently filed, these defendants are facing up to 94 years to life in prison," Riverside County District Attorney Michael Hestrin says, outlining charges against David and Louise Turpin https://t.co/uIuXMbpPjN pic.twitter.com/0n9sgIPZvG
— CBS News (@CBSNews) January 18, 2018
The children were also reportedly not allowed to shower more than once a year and suffered frequent beatings. The parents also had purchased “many toys” but left them in the packages.
“Human depravity,” Hestrin said. “That’s what we’re looking at here.”
