The 13 Turpin children who endured years of physical and mental abuse have been separated from each other. The children who were found shackled and tied to their beds have been in different hospitals since they were rescued on Jan. 14. The children who are under 17 years old will be placed in two different Foster Homes. The remaining adult children will be placed in an Assisted Living Facility so they can receive the ongoing care they desperately need. Reports by the New York Daily News, People, and NBC were used for information presented in this article.

David Turpin, 57, and his wife Louise, 49, were arrested and accused of torturing their children in their Muir Woods Road home in Perris, California. The parents are being held on $12 million bonds each, and if convicted, face life in prison. Both parents pleaded not guilty to the charges. The charges are 12 counts of torture, 12 counts of false imprisonment, seven counts of abuse of a dependent adult, and six counts of child abuse or neglect. David Turpin is also accused of sexually abusing a 14-year-old daughter

The children range in ages from two to 29 years old. The only child who does not show signs of abuse is the two-year-old. Police chief Captain Gregg Fellows reported that the children were tortured by their parents.The rescue happened when one of the Turpin children, aged 17, managed to escape from the home through a window and called for help.

When police arrived they were shocked by what they found. At first, all the children were thought to be underage but that wasn't the case. Six of the children being held hostage in the home were adults. The oldest, aged 29, was so malnourished that she looked like a 10-year-old and only weighs 82 pounds, as reported by NBC.

Abuse

According to Riverside County District Attorney Michael Hestrin, the abuse started out as punishment for the children, not just in California, but also in Texas, where they previously lived.

At first, the children were held down with ropes, then it graduated to chains and padlocks. The children were only fed once a day and denied food, while their parents ate. The only activity the children were allowed to do was writing in hundreds of journals, which authorities also took to comb through. They were also not allowed to bathe or use the bathroom, and some were forced to wear diapers. They were forced to stay up all night so that they slept all day and wouldn't be noticed.

Prosecutors also have petitioned the court to block David and Louise Turpin from any and all contact with the children. Riverside County District Attorney spokesperson John Hall asked for,”no direct or indirect contact with the victims.

No written or electronic contact either through a third party,” as reported by the Daily News. No one ever reported the family to law enforcement or to child services in either state that they lived in.

Family

Louise Turpin's siblings have come out and spoken and say they had no idea that this was going on with the children.

They had verbal contact with one another but did not see each other. Billy Lambert, Louise’s half-brother, during an interview with People, said that his sister told him on the telephone that she wanted another baby and that the doctors said she was healthy.

Lambert stated, “I have disowned her in my opinion. She has hurt the family not just herself and the kids.” He continued with that if he had known, the “family would have stopped them.”

Since the arrests and rescue, people have begun to come forward about the family. Neighbors and friends in both Texas and California thought the family was normal. No one ever suspected this type of abuse was happening and are very surprised by all of this.

The Turpins have not given a reason for all the abuse the children endured over the years or why their children were held captive. During the years, the parents did take the family to Disneyland. They also took the family to Las Vegas a few times to renew their wedding vows and no one suspected a thing was wrong. If it was not for the courage of their 17-year-old daughter, things could have been even worse. The family was planning on moving again to another state within a few days of the rescue.
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