In early 2018, the harrowing story of the Turpin Family emerged, sending shockwaves across the nation. The escape of 17-year-old Jordan Turpin from her family’s residence in California and her courageous 911 call unveiled a chilling reality of prolonged and unimaginable abuse inflicted upon 13 children by their parents, David and Louise Turpin. The world was confronted with the grim details of what became known as the “House of Horrors,” a place where children were subjected to physical, verbal, and emotional torment, chained to beds, starved, and denied basic freedoms. As the extent of the Turpin children’s suffering became public, a collective question arose: how could parents inflict such cruelty upon their own offspring?
The nightmare began to unravel on January 18, 2018, when Jordan Turpin, then a teenager, mustered the courage to flee the family home and dial 911. In a distressing call, she bravely declared, “My parents are abusive. My two little sisters right now are chained up … they’re chained up to their bed.” She further painted a picture of squalor and neglect, stating, “I live in a family of 15 people and our parents are abusive. We live in filth. Sometimes I wake up and can’t breathe because of how dirty the house is.”
Following the revelation of David and Louise Turpin’s heinous acts, the 13 Turpin children, ranging in age from 2 to 29 at the time of their rescue, were placed into foster care. Tragically, for some, the abuse continued within this system. Ultimately, David and Louise Turpin were convicted on 14 felony counts each, receiving sentences of 25 years to life in prison.
In the aftermath of their liberation, Jordan and her siblings have embarked on a long and arduous journey of rebuilding their lives. By 2022, Jordan had established herself in an apartment in Southern California and shared with PEOPLE magazine that she maintained a “very close” relationship with her siblings. “After everything that happened, I’m so protective over each one. Nothing could ever break our bond,” she affirmed, highlighting the resilience and unity forged through shared trauma.
From the depths of the “House of Horrors” abuse to their lives today, this is the comprehensive story of the Turpin family.
Unveiling the Turpin Family “House of Horrors”
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The Turpin Family. David and Louise Turpin are pictured with their children in a family photo. Image: Courtesy Billy Lambert
The Turpin family’s ordeal came to light on January 14, 2018, when then-17-year-old Jordan Turpin escaped their Perris, California, home and contacted authorities. Police intervention revealed the horrifying truth: parents David and Louise had subjected their 13 children to years of severe abuse, varying in nature and intensity across the siblings.
Subsequent reports detailed the Turpin parents’ systematic cruelty. They controlled every aspect of their children’s lives, from severely restricting food intake to isolating them within the home. The children endured imprisonment, beatings, and even strangulation. Upon their discovery, many were in a state of profound neglect, unable to communicate effectively and unfamiliar with law enforcement.
Jordan’s courageous 911 call provided a chilling glimpse into their reality. She recounted to the operator, “I just ran away from home. and we have abusing parents. They hit us. They like to throw us across the room. They pull out our hair. They yank out our hair. My two little sisters right now are chained up.”
Jordan’s escape was the culmination of over two years of planning, strategically timed as the family prepared for a move from California to Oklahoma. She explained to PEOPLE, “My plan was, okay, while we’re on the trip and in a crowd, I’m going to sneak out and call 911.”
However, her mother’s escalating agitation in anticipation of the move prompted Jordan to act sooner. Jordan added, “Mother was yelling and throwing things, saying, ‘When we move to Oklahoma, I’m gonna chain all your …,’ and she said a really bad word. She said, ‘You can just sit in your …’ and she said the ‘S-word.’ It got really, really scary.”
Her siblings’ distress at their mother’s volatile behavior convinced Jordan to accelerate her plan. “The night I left was not expected. I was pushed to that point. I literally thought we were gonna die,” Jordan confided to PEOPLE, highlighting the imminent danger she perceived.
Inside the Walls of the “House of Horrors”: Abuse and Torture
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The Turpin Family house in Perris, California, became known as the “House of Horrors.” Image: Sandy Huffaker/Getty
The Turpin family home was aptly named the “House of Horrors,” reflecting the unimaginable conditions the children endured. Punishments were often arbitrary and cruel. For instance, “playing with water” – even washing hands above the wrists – could result in being chained to beds. The children were frequently left in their own waste for extended periods, and showers were permitted only once a year.
To maintain their facade of normalcy and conceal the abuse, David and Louise enforced a reversed sleep schedule, with the family sleeping during the day and remaining awake at night. Both parents worked from home and deceptively registered their residence as a private K-12 school with the California Department of Education, further isolating their children from outside scrutiny.
The cruelty extended beyond physical deprivation. In a particularly disturbing incident, the eldest Turpin child was forced to witness her pet cat being mauled to death by feral dogs as punishment for taking food from the pantry without permission. Riverside County Deputy District Attorney Kevin Beecham recounted to PEOPLE, “She was caught stealing or taking some food from the fridge or pantry, and her mom told her to bring her cat and so Mom put the cat outside, and made her daughter watch as these dogs literally ate the cat in front of her, tore apart the cat and killed it.” This horrific event occurred when the girl was approximately nine years old, demonstrating the long-term pattern of abuse.
Psychological torture was also a weapon employed by the Turpin parents. They deliberately allowed the low-battery beeping of smoke detectors to persist throughout the house, creating a constant, irritating noise. Beecham explained, “There’s that annoying beep, that loud beep. That’s what you heard all throughout the house. The psychiatrist explained that’s one mechanism that torturers would institute to try to keep control by using sounds.”
Food and gifts were perversely used as instruments of torture. The parents would place pies and other tempting food items within sight of the starving children, forbidding them from touching or eating anything. Similarly, the house was filled with unopened Christmas presents, a constant reminder of denied joy and further psychological manipulation.
Jordan Turpin’s Brave Escape and Rescue
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Jordan Turpin, whose escape and 911 call led to the rescue of her siblings. Image: ABC
In January 2018, Jordan, along with her 13-year-old sister, bravely escaped the “House of Horrors” by climbing out of a window. However, fear overwhelmed the younger sister, and she returned home. Jordan, who had meticulously planned the escape with some of her siblings for two years, carried her older brother’s deactivated cell phone and made the pivotal 911 call.
Upon arriving at the Turpin residence, authorities were confronted with the horrifying reality Jordan described. They discovered three children chained to beds and the remaining siblings confined to small, foul-smelling rooms. David and Louise Turpin were immediately arrested and faced a litany of charges, including 12 counts of torture, seven counts of abuse of a dependent adult, six counts of child abuse, and 12 counts of false imprisonment.
Legal Consequences for David and Louise Turpin
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David Allen Turpin and Louise Anna Turpin, the parents responsible for the “House of Horrors” abuse. Image: Riverside County Sheriff’s Department (2)
Prosecutor Beecham, in conversation with PEOPLE, revealed Louise Turpin’s apparent lack of comprehension regarding the severity of their actions after their arrest. He recounted, “She wrote an apology letter basically saying, ‘Sorry I chained you up. It won’t happen again. I’ll be a better mother.’ She was just very naïve to the whole thing.”
“She was just thinking that she needed parenting classes and that would be the end of it. David, not so much. I think he knew the writing was on the wall early on,” Beecham elaborated, suggesting a disparity in their understanding of the gravity of their crimes.
Both David and Louise were initially charged with numerous counts of torture, false imprisonment, and child abuse. David also faced an additional charge of a lewd act on a child under the age of 14. Further investigation led to a perjury charge against David for affidavits submitted to the California Department of Education, falsely claiming the children were enrolled in a private school.
On February 22, 2019, David and Louise Turpin pleaded guilty to 14 felony counts each, including cruelty to an adult dependent, child cruelty, torture, and false imprisonment. They were both sentenced to life in prison, with the possibility of parole after 22 years, a sentence reflecting the profound and lasting harm inflicted upon their children.
Life After the “House of Horrors”: The Turpin Siblings Today
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Jennifer and Jordan Turpin on Good Morning America, sharing their story and journey of healing. Image: ABC News / “Good Morning America”
Following their rescue, the youngest Turpin children were placed into foster care in California. However, in a devastating turn of events, several siblings experienced further abuse within the foster care system, a secondary trauma compounding their already horrific past.
In November 2021, Jordan and her sister Jennifer bravely shared their experiences in an interview with Diane Sawyer for 20/20. They spoke candidly about the “House of Horrors” and the immense difficulty Jordan faced in making the life-altering 911 call. Jordan recounted to Sawyer the unfamiliarity of the outside world, “I was actually on the road because I didn’t even know about the sidewalks. You’re supposed to be on the sidewalk, but I’d never been out there.”
Days later, the sisters appeared on Good Morning America, discussing the overwhelming public response to their story. Jennifer expressed gratitude for the outpouring of support, stating she received “hundreds of DMs” and “all the love and support I’m getting, it’s overwhelming, but it’s awesome.”
Jordan also revealed her aspirations to become a motivational speaker, hoping to use her experiences to make a positive impact. She articulated, “My whole life it has been so hard for me to understand why everything has happened, but if I can use what I went through to make a difference in the world, then I think that can heal me.”
The 20/20 special also exposed the failures of social services, revealing that several siblings were placed in abusive foster homes. Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin expressed his dismay, stating, “[It’s] unimaginable to me that we could have the very worst case of child abuse that I’ve ever seen, maybe one of the worst in California history, and that we would then not be able to get it together to give them basic needs, basic necessities.”
In July 2022, six Turpin siblings filed a lawsuit against their foster parents, Riverside County, ChildNet Youth and Family Services, and the Foster Family Network, seeking accountability for the abuse they suffered in foster care. The lawsuit detailed horrific allegations of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse at the hands of foster parents Marcelino and Rosa Olguin, including accusations of sexual assault, beatings, and intimidation.
Marcelino and Rosa Olguin entered plea agreements in September 2024, acknowledging their crimes. Marcelino pled guilty to multiple counts of lewd acts with a child, false imprisonment, and child injury. Rosa and their daughter Lennys pled guilty to child cruelty, false imprisonment, and intimidating a witness. In October 2024, Marcelino was sentenced to seven years in prison, while Rosa and Lennys received probation.
Jordan, a prominent voice among the Turpin siblings, has focused on healing from the dual traumas of her upbringing and foster care abuse. In 2023, she moved into a new home with her pets, embracing a fresh start. She spoke to PEOPLE in November of that year about her journey of mental health awareness and healing, “Over this last year, I have learned a lot about mental health and everything. It was a really rough year,” Turpin said. “The last few months it’s been really good because I’ve really learned so much about mental health [and] why everything has affected me the way it affected me.”
In a moment of joy and celebration, Jennifer Turpin married her husband Aron in October 2024, surrounded by her siblings. She shared photos of her gothic cemetery wedding on Instagram, marking a significant milestone of hope and new beginnings.
The Unbreakable Bond of the Turpin Siblings
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Jeanetta, Jennifer, and Jordan Turpin, highlighting the strong sibling bond forged through shared adversity. Image: Jordan Turpin Instagram
Despite the unimaginable horrors they endured, or perhaps because of them, the Turpin siblings share an extraordinarily strong bond. Jordan emphasized in July 2022, “We all look out for each other. We all have this super big bond. We have our inside jokes, and we’re all very, very close.”
She further expressed her unwavering protectiveness towards her siblings, stating, “After everything that happened, I’m so protective over each one. Nothing could ever break our bond. I always try and stay strong and positive for them.”
Earlier in 2022, all 13 siblings experienced a moment of collective joy, attending a Justin Bieber concert together. Jordan, who had found solace in Bieber’s music while captive, described the experience: “We were jumping, screaming and even got emotional. I got to experience it with my siblings and it didn’t feel real.” This shared experience underscores their resilience and the healing power of siblinghood in the face of unimaginable adversity.
