Gasps of shock filled a court room as photos were shown of severely malnourished children shackled up and caged in what has been described as a vicious and horrific campaign of abuse, it has been claimed.
David Turpin, 57, and his wife, Louise, 49, were charged with imprisoning and torturing their 13 children, after their 17-year-old daughter escaped and called police, telling them her siblings – who are aged between two and 29 – were being held captive in their home.
The couple have pleaded not guilty to more than 40 charges, including torture, false imprisonment, abuse of a dependent adult and child abuse.
Now, according to the El Paso Times and multiple other news outlets, shocking new details have emerged from the ‘House of Horrors’, including a recording of the 911 call and photos of the kids chained up and in cages.
CNN reports the girl who originally called police sounded “calm” on the 911 call, before describing some of the horrific conditions she claims the children were kept in.
“I can’t breathe because of how dirty the house is,” she reportedly said on the call. “We don’t take baths. I don’t know if we need to go to the doctor.”
“They are chained up in their bed,” she then added. “I wanted to call y’all so you can help my sisters.”
The children had reportedly been so isolated from their surroundings outside, that the girl who made the 911 call was unable to tell the dispatcher where she was – or details about how many months each of the children were kept chained up.
Meanwhile, more of the children shared shocking allegations against their parents, and according to the El Paso Times, some claimed that while physical hitting was the first level of punishment for any wrongdoings, others included beatings with a paddle, an oar, and a metal-tipped tent pole.
“If this didn’t work, they were put in cages,” Riverside County Deputy District Attorney Kevin Beecham added during the hearing.
A 14-year-old girl claimed her mother threw her down the stairs when she was caught in her room, investigator Brett Rooker told the court, meanwhile another child claimed her hair would be so viciously pulled she’d be lifted off the ground, while others would be punched and slapped.
The publication reports one girl claimed she was forced to stand in the corner of a bathroom as punishment for playing with a Barbie doll, and became so dizzy she collapsed and fractured her jaw in the fall. After taking her to hospital, the mother allegedly warned her kids to tell doctors she had slipped on the wet bathroom floor.
Meanwhile in one photo, shown in court, a girl was reportedly seen tightly chained around her frail torso. The publication reports her long hair covered her face, and she appeared to be knelt on the floor in front of a pair of bunk beds.
An additional photo showed another girl “chained to a bedpost, sitting on the floor with her thin wrists shackled tightly”, the reporter for the El Paso Times writes.
Read more: Sick sexual abuse twist in ‘House of Horrors’ case exposed by sister
On another occasion, the escaped daughter claims she was punished for watching a Justin Bieber video on a borrowed phone, and claimed Louise Turpin choked her, before telling her she wanted her to “die and go to hell”.
It was reportedly these alleged threats in particular that motivated the girl to escape and call for help, after her mother is said to have told her she was “worse than the devil”.
Presenting evidence that the kids were severely malnourished, the prosecution reportedly told the court that two of the daughters will never be able to have children, while more suffer from psychosocial dwarfism, which can be caused by severe stress.
Elsewhere, the escaped daughter made sexual assault allegations against her father – which he has denied.
Responding to the shocking claims, the publication states that the defence told the court there was a phone in the Perris home, and some of the kids had access to social media.