now went emergency what are you
reporting um I just went away from home
because I lived in a family of 15 and my
two little sisters right now are teamed
up okay how old are you I'm 17 when a
911 operator for Riverside County
receives a strange call from what sounds
like a very confused child she has no
idea of the horrors about to be revealed
to
her in the very early morning hours of
January 14th 20 8 a home security camera
in Paris California captures what looks
like a young child fleeing from what
seems to be a typical Suburban House the
child runs shakily down the driveway
before picking up speed once hitting the
sidewalk and disappearing from view this
is 17-year-old Jordan Turpin and though
she's been planning for this moment for
almost 2 years she still has no idea
what she's about to do will change the
course of her family's lives forever
interestingly another person this one
look looking to be older also emerges
from the house and moves quickly down
the street off camera though in the
complete opposite direction only to
return a few minutes later and re-enter
the house at the same time Jordan makes
it to a corner down the block where she
stops beneath a stop sign and with hands
shaking violently dials 911 I just ran
away from home okay do you know where
you are um I'm actually in California
Paris do you know what street you're on
um
no do you see any signs or anything like
any street signs no I no I don't the
operator speaks with her for a minute
before realizing this is a matter for
the Sheriff's Department and ask Jordan
to hold on one second while she
transfers her Jordan agrees and stands
panting in the darkness full of
adrenaline and fear that at any moment
her parents will appear Out of the
Shadows it's with the transfer she's not
sure where she's at she says she's in
Paris and she ran away from home okay
hello hello oh yes I'm still here what's
your name Jordan T the operator asks her
to spell her last name and Jordan tries
although she misspells it both times the
operator asks t u r t e n do you need my
address yeah what's your address okay
you got to give me a minute this is
going to take a off here Jordan pauses
taking a couple of deep breaths before
doing her best to provide an answer I
really very okay this is my address
9257 case did you get that case is it c
a s e okay sorry I'm going to start over
my address is
92570 5 five 7 4 did you get it okay so
now you just gave me a whole bunch of
numbers you didn't give me any kind of
street name there oh okay I'm sorry um
okay so you're just around the corner
from your house is that right yeah I
think I'm not sure I've never been out I
don't go out much so I don't know
anything about the streets or anything
it's later revealed that Jordan has
never been to school or received any
kind of formal education whatsoever so
the fact she's able to offer anything at
all is actually rather impressive the
operator asked Jordan a couple more
questions about her location before
getting to the heart of the matter why
did you leave your house what why did
you leave your house my two little
sisters right now are chained up where
are they chained up at on their bed then
there are 15 kids there's 13 kids and
then a mother and father are you at a
corner right now I'm I might be are you
at is there a street sign is there a
pole with two names at the top I just
see I just see a stop sign okay can you
go over and stand right at that stop
sign yes shortly thereafter Deputy
Anthony Kachi at the end of a long
graveyard shift pulls up to the curb
getting out to greet the small
disheveled figure standing alone in the
darkness hi
Jordan hi what's going on
okay I just ran away from home okay and
I live in a family of 15 okay thank you
so much there's a mother and father and
then there's 13
kids and how old are the kids okay some
of them are like okay my older sister is
29 the youngest is two and they all live
in the house yes even your 29-year-old
sister yeah there's kind of scared to
ask to move out because
of their mother some of them have asked
for a job before and she acts like
that's crazy and it would never happen
but um my two little sisters right now
chained up how old are
they 11 and 14 they're chained up
because they stole mother's food uhhuh
but okay yeah and do you want to know
why they stole mother's food why okay
all we ever eat for like probably like
two straight years or three or more but
we always eat the same things but
sometimes we do eat I'm sorry if I talk
too much okay I've never talked to
anybody out there so I don't I I've
never been alone with the person so this
is very hard for me to talk despite
Jordan's marked level of trepidation she
continues to divulge as as much
information as possible though she
clearly struggles to put it all into
words she picks up where she left off
with the dispatcher during her 911 call
in regards to Turpin family life and how
little the children were fed I don't
know much about my mother she doesn't
like us she doesn't spend time with us
ever who takes care of you uh I I take
care of myself and mother does buy food
for us so she feeds us okay all we have
eat being sandes sometimes they tell
mother that they're hungry but she has
to give it to them and then when they
throw up she says you're supposed to
tell me if you're hungry I'll give you
something and then they tried to tell
her and she just like okay go on so
you've never been outside before okay
I've been outside uh do you go to school
no I I haven't finished first grade oh
Jordan having been sheltered from the
outside world is painfully apparent when
she concedes that she isn't familiar
with the most basic of health related
terminology does anybody at the house
take any kind of medication oh I don't
know what medication is any
medicines uh when we have a cold
sometimes we take
rotation uh I don't know we don't take
medicine much when we're sick right so
how did you do your parents know you
left your house no do
home do you take any medication what's
medication medication yeah what's
medication do you take
pills do you take pills oh I don't think
I've ever tooken a pill before okay
right I have it um but what about your
other siblings do they ever go outside
okay mother treats them right they're
like they go out every day when she goes
out which takes turn sometimes two right
now but when was One
MH was crying and mother Dr her head
with a pencil and she just turned one
and we was like noticing stuff like we
was like did Anja cuz she start acting
weird after that and so um so so you
don't go to school right I don't do your
parents do they let you go outside uh uh
I've never we don't even go in the
backyard but the reason I called and the
reason I managed to get out here this is
one of the most scariest things I've
ever done I'm terrified but I I called
because my two little sisters they're
chained up right now and they do you
have do you have pictures of that yes I
can show you I actually didn't have it
and then one of my sisters told me I
need to get pictures so see here you can
look at that see those are the places it
making no then and that's and see how
dirty she is we so filthy we we we don't
take baths we don't is this a is there a
cell phone number no that's to this
oh no can I look at do you have any
other photos you you might be able to
see it yes those are just photos of me I
have pictures and videos but they're on
my camera and I I have to that would
take forever have you lived in other
states um yeah Texas did they act like
this when you lived in Texas they act
yeah they act different they actually
Bend all of their kids in a house and
they left us there for like 4 years and
then later they came back and picked us
up but they're living with us right now
as the Texan neighbors of the family
would later report the family who'd
moved to Texas in the late '90s kept
entirely to themselves until a decade
later when they apparently fled in the
middle of the night without a word of
explanation when neighbors went over to
the mobile home to check on the dogs
that had been abandoned there they were
shocked and horrified by what they saw
the dogs had apparently been found
surviving off the used diapers left amid
the other trash and feces left in the
home and the doors and refrigerator all
bore padlocks and frayed ropes tied to
the multiple bare bunk beds it would
later come out that this was where the
turpens had abandoned all but two of
their children for at least 3 years
while they themselves lived in an
apartment nearby only coming by once a
week to drop off a small amount of food
sometimes we live in fil and sometimes I
wake up and I can't breathe because how
dirty the house is we never take bath I
don't know if we need to go to the
doctor but sometimes we think stuff
might be wrong with us and we tell
mother and she just says go on when was
the last time you had a bath uh uh I
don't know almost a year ago what if I
went to your parents house right now
what would they tell
me I'd be terrified if you went to my
parents house they couldn't see me um
how did your sisters get like this okay
your parents chain them up yes because
they stole food okay but they stole it
because they were hungry you make sure
to save these okay okay I will don't get
rid of those I will I won't okay can you
do me a favor take a seat in the back of
my car we're going to go around the
corner okay
okay take a seat back here okay by this
point the deputies heard enough he
radios for backup and escorts Jordan to
the police car to be driven to the
family home he reassures her she doesn't
have to see her parents on the way over
to the house Deputy Kachi asks Jordan a
few more questions do you have any
injuries what's injuries are you hurt oh
no not right now
okay are your parents sleeping no
they're oh I think they're up they
probably notic me missing have you ever
tried to escape before yes I
have how much would it cost to take me
to Nevada
Nevada no no not Las Vegas just
Nevada just the Border just at the very
beginning of
Nevada yeah how much would it
cost
huh
no no I'm
18 okay a couple
hundred um I'm not going I'll take a
bus yeah thanks
bye what happens when you try to um my
parents never tried to my parents never
caught me but my old sister has went
away and she caught her and she was in
she was I think just turned 20 yeah and
her sister her M her back home and she
got in so much trouble has anybody ever
been to your house before to check on
your welfare um like have family like
have any of your other siblings called
the cops no they yeah
some of them has one or two but they're
too terrified did you call the police I
no I didn't have way to get a phone yet
this is the first chance I got
phone but I got this phone
probably like less than a month ago but
the next chance I got to call and run
away was how did you get a phone okay
it's my brother's phone he was going to
throw it away and it wasn't used and so
I I needed a way to call number one and
I asked my sister would that be okay and
cuz we don't know much and so and my why
don't you know much a order system why
don't you know much we don't go around
we our parents never tell us things when
we hear stuff we're shock it took
forever for us to figure out what our
parents does is against the law it took
forever and even the 29-year-old doesn't
know this okay the 29y old does she knew
for a long time but she I think she's
scared the sister 29-year-old Jennifer
Turpin had in fact tried to escape once
when the Turpin family lived in Texas
but without any form of Education or
identification she was eventually forced
to return home where she was promptly
punished is there a phone number to that
phone uh I don't think there is how did
you call 911 would you could call
911 any that even if they can't connect
you
can so your parents you're 17 years old
yes and throughout your whole life
you've never gone to school right uh I
started first grade 2015 or 2016 uhhuh
but um how did you start first grade oh
in home school yes and you've never gone
to
school right what else do your parents
do to you guys oh my brother's change up
too right now why did you decide to
leave today it was the old next chance I
got that I could
how did you get a chance to get out well
my I was actually terrified my mother
was in the kitchen talking to the to the
older ones and she was laughing and
stuff and I was terrified but she just
got real mad she just like was doing
stuff to my little sister and I was just
like and she started saying that she was
going to just do stuff to us and so I
was I was just so scared and I just left
I just I just went out the window I she
I don't so when you left right now you
left out the window
yes and your mom was awake when you she
was in the other room yeah does your dad
have a gun are there any weapons in the
house yes but they don't use it how long
have your mom and dad been
married I don't know probably 20 I don't
I don't know they she got married when
she was 16 Jordan is referring to her
mother 49-year-old Lis turbin according
to both of Louis's sisters Louis
essentially ran away from home with the
then 23-year-old David when she was only
16 David was from a highly respected and
influential family in their Hometown and
it was for this reason that Louis's
parents gave their blessing for the two
to get officially married yes so all
kids have the same mom and dad yes
according to David's parents the reason
he and Louise had so many children was
down to them both being deeply religious
in the Pentecostal Faith though the
couple didn't attend a church or even
have one near their home does your mom
take you to the doctor not all the time
there was one time we all went to the
doctor and that's cuz we were sick and
the doctor told us that if we were one
like one day later we would it would
have been too late she always waits for
the last minute for everything have the
police ever got involved with this no oh
why don't you guys just leave the house
because we're terrified we we don't
really have a way everyone's always
looking there's always somebody well you
said your mom's always gone right right
right why don't you just
leave either she Le one of the old ones
there and our house
equals it makes a beeping noise this
beeping noise was actually just the low
battery sound from the smoke detectors
in the turpin's home it seems Jordan is
under the impression that this was a
signal from some sort of security system
at this point the other officers pull up
to the scene and Deputy kalachi steps
out of the car to direct them it's now
7: a.m. and the sun has started to rise
on this cool January morning when they
approach the front door and knock loudly
for a couple
minutes hi hi s bu you how you guys
doing good we got a call um for a check
the welfare here at your house so for
for what check the welfare so just
basically check on everybody make sure
everybody's okay okay hi do you guys
have kids in the house yes okay do you
mind if we come in and just take a look
make sure everybody's safe and
everything's okay okay what kind of call
did you get well we got a call that
there was a young female walking around
saying that she came from a house over
here we were able to find out that this
was a house and we just wanted to check
and make sure everybody was okay they
she came from here that's what she said
from inside this house I think
so otherwise we wouldn't be knocking on
your door suay say her
name um I don't know did she say her
name I don't know him but we need to we
just need to check and make sure
everybody's okay you'll notice the
officers are careful not to mention
Jordan by name to not implicate her to
her parents faces once we get in make
sure everything's okay we'll we'll get
out of your we have a lot where we're
packing getting ready to move wor so
it's a mess in here so all right that's
that's right we don't mind messes we've
been in me how you doing sir I'm doing
okay okay we were we were just in bed I
mean like so most people are right now
so we we expect you guys to be in bed no
weapons in the house or anything like
that I do have uh I do I do have a gun
that's it's locked up okay locked up is
good we like that okay okay well we're
going to come in and check okay we just
want to make sure everybody's okay do
you have a search word or anything or
don't need one sir as the officers
prepare to carry out a warrantless
search of the premises they have
determined there are exigent
circumstances surrounding the current
situation courts will typically look at
the time when officers make the
warrantless search or seizure to
evaluate whether at that point in time a
reasonable officer at the scene would
have believed it was urgent to act and
impractical to secure a warrant courts
may also consider whether the fact
suggested that the suspect was armed in
planning to escape whether a reasonable
police officer would believe their
safety or other safety was threatened
and whether there was a serious crime
involved police and hot pursuit of a
fleeing criminal may also make use of
the exigent circumstances exception as
officers push their way past the
corpulent door jam that is David and
ease their way into the large open home
they're shocked and horrified by what
greets them every inch of the
2,388 Ft House's floor is covered in
mounds of rotting food and moldering
trash while the powerful stench of human
waste hangs in the humid air strangely
there also seems to be several dozen
unopened boxes and packages of
children's toys and brand new children's
clothing complete with tags seen peeking
out of the Monstrous piles of garbage
all right well like I said sorry to bug
you guys but we just got this call we we
all we do is we just check and make sure
everybody's okay and you got a call yeah
we got a call from not sure if it was
the young girl that left or if it was a
neighbor that saw her walking around the
street so we'll get to the bottom of it
as soon as we make sure everybody's okay
then we'll de we'll we'll figure out if
maybe she was one of your kids that
wandered away how many kids do you have
13 13 total yeah woo you guys are busy
yeah officers head to the back of the
house to the children's bedrooms two
tiny back rooms the first crammed with a
narrow bunk beds but otherwise empty and
the second which is crammed with both
bunk beds and a filthy mattress which is
sitting on the floor with two little
girls sitting listlessly on top hi
sweetheart hi
girls can I see your
wrist yeah which one what
okay the officers believe they found the
room featured in Jordan's phone pictures
but there's only one thing missing the
actual chains the children obviously
frightened and wary of the strangers
give no answers though eventually one
does Point them surreptitiously to a
sliding closet door meanwhile officer
Ogden is still by the door with David
and Louise distracting them with
questions and small talk where are you
guys planning on moving to Oklahoma
Oklahoma yeah that's a long way away
yeah you guys know family over there or
anything like that no my job's moving oh
okay what do you do for
work engineer finally as his eyes have
adjusted to the Gloom officer Ogden
notices something to his left and
suddenly realizes David Turpin may have
had a reason to be awkwardly standing in
that particular spot in the
entryway is this another bedroom back
here you got another couple kiddos
asleep there yeah sge you got another
room in the front right here with two
kiddos in the bed officers enter the
previously unnoticed third bedroom where
they find a boy who was chained by his
wrists and ankles to the top bunk bed
back in the girls room officer Rodriguez
slides open the closet door and looks
inside all
right all right let's just uh go ahead
and detain the uh yeah parents at this
point uh Ma'am why don't you step over
here for a minute okay where okay with
you and Sir step over here for a second
just step over with my partner here for
a second you got any weapons on you no
turn around real quick I'm going to
check you
out do me a favor face that window over
here over this way yep all right sir go
ahead I'm going to have you turn over
here we're going to walk outside all
right you get my house shoes um where's
your where's your shoes at there Lu you
know if they in the well we'll have to
find them for for right now let's just
walk out and we'll get you something all
right the bedroom or the all right well
we got we got other stuff we're dealing
with and we'll try to find you I'm
okay you don't have any
weapons nothing uh nothing hidden in the
bra anything okay just making sure cuz
we have some people that do that so we
just want to make sure like I said I've
never been in trouble
okay this is a first for me and okay
well um I don't understand I'll explain
everything as soon as we as soon as we
make sure everybody's safe okay now let
me ask you yes quick quickly are there
keys to the little locks there okay
where are they um my son and daughter
can get them okay that's in the house
the ones that are in the house they know
where they are yes okay all right is
that what this is about well that's part
of it yeah definitely we we need to make
sure that the kids are safe and that
they're not tied up I know that's
understandable but I can explain that
this is mine so go ahead and put her in
that one while the parents are being
detained officers still inside the house
begin a desperate search to find the key
to free the Chain Child does it work on
his I know I know the other one that's
what I was saying the other one is in
there it looks different than that but
it's the same size it's in the drawer
that I was
in and finally the young boy is freed
all 13 of the Turpin children were
immediately taken to the hospital to
receive treatment for their severe
malnutrition and other injuries their
ages were officially determined and
though all had the overall appearance of
children under 18 more than half of them
in fact were actually adults between the
ages of 18 and 29 the 28-year-old
weighed only 82 lbs at the time of
rescue and all of the children suffered
cognitive impairment and nerve damage
from the consistent lack of food
investigators would learn that food was
something the children were
psychologically tormented with as the
parents would buy large food items such
as whole pies then leave them out for
the children to look at but not eat as
it turns out the unopen toys
investigator saw around the house on the
day of the rescue were bought for the
very same reason investigators would
also discover that none of the children
were educated and indeed none would
claim to have knowledge beyond that of
an average third grader David Turpin had
filed documents with the county claiming
he was running a school out of his home
for children but this was later proved
to be completely false the most they did
was inform the children as to what grade
they were supposed to be in on the off
chance a stranger asked them during one
of their few Ventures outside with the
oldest daughter Jennifer explaining they
love to point out things in Deuteronomy
saying that we have the right to do this
to you I was afraid to do one little
thing wrong when interrogated by
authorities both parents were completely
unwilling or unable to come up with a
single viable reason for why they
treated their children this way and
Louise even seemed confused by the
questioning she later wrote this letter
to her children from her jail cell it
reads father and I love you so much
we're so sorry for everything we've done
wrong and now realize that we had done
some things wrong things will be so
different in the future the way you eat
and outside time and baths will be done
more regularly I'm sorry this had to
happen but our future as a family will
be so much better and stronger we hope
to see you guys soon love and kisses mom
and dad I promise there will be no
chains in the house again that would
never happen again I'm so sorry I love
you so much and hope to see you soon
David had something different to say in
a statement to the court your honor I
thank God for all of my children each
one of them is a blessing from God my
homeschooling and discipline had good
intentions I never intended for any harm
to come to my children I'm sorry if I've
done anything to cause them harm I'm
glad that we were able to resolve this
case without my children being forced to
testify I love my children and I believe
my children love me I hope and pray that
my children can stay close to each other
and look out for each other since their
mother and father cannot be there for
them and with them I hope the very best
for my children in their future when it
came time for the children to give
statements to the courts one defended
her parents Joy Turpin 21 at the time
had this to say I want the court to know
that our parents loved each other and
loved each of their children they felt
that God blessed them with all their
children so they kept away from the
world and trusted God would guide them
through life through the years things
became more and more overwhelming but
they kept trusting in God I remember our
mother sitting in her recliner and
crying saying she don't know what to do
she didn't want to use rope or chains
but she was afraid her children were
taking in too much sugar and caffeine
our parents didn't know we were
malnourished our parents decided to
start homeschooling all their children I
believe our parents were afraid to put
us in public school for many reasons I
feel like 25 years is too long of a
sentence I believe with all my heart
that our parents tried their best to
raise all 13 of us and they wanted to
give us a good life the oldest child
Jennifer gave a statement that seems
much more in line with the other
children who gave interviews to the
Press I'm in college now and living
independently I love hanging out with my
friends and life is great I believe
everything happens for a reason life may
have been bad but it made me strong I
fought to become the person I am I saw
my dad change my mom they almost changed
me but I realized what was happening I
immediately did what I could to not
become like that I'm a fighter I'm
strong and I'm shooting through life
like a rocket in April 2019 David and
Lise Turpin were both sentenced to 25
years to life in prison where they
remain to this day as for the Turpin
children once their parents were
arrested they were split into two groups
with the adults being placed in support
of care and the underage children being
placed into foster homes this should
have been where their story Ended as the
children were now free and should have
been safely on the road to recovery but
unfortunately in 2022 the six younger
Turpin children filed a lawsuit against
both Riverside County and Child net a
private foster care agency alleging that
they were knowingly placed in inhumane
Foster Homes at the time of this video a
resolution to this lawsuit has not been
made the adult Turpin children didn't
entirely Escape hardship at the hands of
the county either tons of support flowed
in from all over the country after their
2018 rescue with money from the
donations alone totaling
$600,000 however the money was placed in
a trust and the children were allegedly
unable to obtain fund
from the court appointed guardian of the
trust upon request it wasn't until ABC's
2020 investigated and aired a special on
the case that according to Jordan people
started listening and doing their jobs
and the money was distributed to the
turpan children