California couple indicted for child abuse to 13 children
A California couple was charged with multiple counts of torture and child abuse after they held 13 malnourished children captive in a suburban home. Prosecutors said the youngsters had been tortured to an extent that they couldn’t even use the bathroom.
The accused David Allen Turpin, 57, and his wife Louise Anna Turpin, 49 were charged with 12 counts of torture, 12 of false imprisonment, six of child abuse and six of abuse of a dependent adult at a court hearing in the city of Riverside.
District Attorney Mike Hestrin told a press conference that the bail had been set at USD 13 million for each of the defendants.
The children were shackled with chains and padlocks in their filthy, foul-smelling home. The authorities received an emergency assistance call from a 17 year old who had managed to escape the house. Following which a raid was conducted.
Seven children out of the 13 ranged in the age group from 18 to 29, said officials.
All 13 are being treated for malnutrition and undergoing other diagnostic tests, the officials added.
Hestrin said that all the children had been subjected to "prolonged abuse" and had not been allowed to shower more than once a year and never been allowed to see a dentist or doctor.
"Often, they were not released from their chains to go to the bathroom," he told the press conference.
-PTC News
