Warning: This piece discusses child abuse and may be disturbing to some readers.
Jordan Turpin was the key figure who rescued her siblings and herself from prolonged mistreatment by her parents after making a daring escape from her home.
In 2018, at just 17 years old, Jordan fled her family home in Perris, California, and contacted 911. When a police officer arrived, she immediately recounted the abuse she and her siblings had endured.
It was revealed that David and Louise Turpin, Jordan’s parents, had been subjecting their children to severe abuse, including starvation, physical beatings, and confinement.
Emotionally charged police bodycam footage captured the moment Jordan broke down and shared her harrowing experiences of growing up in such a household.
“I just ran away from home,” she told the officer. “I live in a family of 15. My two little sisters right now are chained up on the bed.”
Jordan further explained: “Mother didn’t chain them up just to be mean. They’re chained up because they stole Mother’s food.”
The officer then inquired about any medication Jordan might be on, but she was unfamiliar with the term.
He asked if Jordan possessed any photographic evidence to support her claims, to which she responded affirmatively. Although she didn’t have pictures of everything, she did have images showing her younger sisters in chains.
He advised Jordan to ensure that these photos remained on her phone.
Soon after her encounter with the officer, her parents were detained. In April 2019, David and Louise Turpin were sentenced to life in prison for the starvation and torture of 12 of their 13 children.
Nearly seven years after the imprisonment of their parents, James, Jolinda, and Julissa Turpin have shared their story in an interview with Diane Sawyer.
In a preview of the interview, set to air on February 3, one of the daughters recalls a conversation she had with her mother shortly before her arrest.
The siblings also discuss the additional mistreatment they faced from foster caregivers after being rescued from their parents’ abuse.
“They would do everything in their power to try to, like, break me,” James shares in the trailer.
The Turpins: A New House of Horror – A Diane Sawyer Special Event will air on February 3 on ABC and will be available on Disney+ and Hulu the next day.
If these issues have affected you or you wish to discuss child welfare in confidence, the Childhelp USA National Child Abuse Hotline (1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-4453) is available 24/7, taking calls from the United States, Canada, US Virgin Islands, Guam, and Puerto Rico.