Turpin Family: What to Know About the 'House of Horrors' and Where the Siblings Are Now

Mar. 15, 2025

The Turpin family.Photo: David-Louis Turpin/Facebook

The story of the Turpin family stunned the nation in early 2018. After 17-year-old Jordan Turpin escaped her family’s home in California and called 911 to report unfathomable abuse, the public soon learned the awful truth of what David and Louise Turpin inflicted on their 13 children for years.

The kids were imprisoned in a true “House of Horrors.” They were routinely physically, verbally, and mentally abused, chained to their beds, and deprived of food and the ability to exercise. As the details of what the Turpin children survived were shared with the public, many began to wonder how two parents could be so horrible to their own children.

It wasn’t until Jan. 18, 2018, that then-17-year-old Jordan was able to flee her family’s home and phone 911. During the call, shetold the operator, “My parents are abusive. My two little sisters right now are chained up … they’re chained up to their bed.”

She continued, “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.”

Jordan and her siblings have been carving new lives for themselves ever since. In 2022, she settled into her own apartment in Southern California and told PEOPLE thatshe remained “very close” to her siblings.

“After everything that happened, I’m so protective over each one. Nothing could ever break our bond,” she said.

From the abuse they endured in the “House of Horrors” to their lives today, here’s everything to know about the Turpin family.

What happened to the Turpin family?

The Turpin Family.Courtesy Billy Lambert

On Jan. 14, 2018, 17-year-old Jordan escaped from her family’s home in Perris, Calif. and called authorities. After police arrived, they discovered that Jordan’s parents, David and Louise, had been severely abusing their 13 children to varying degrees for years.

Reports later revealed that the Turpin parents restricted the food their children could eat, left several of them in a home alone to fend for themselves, and imprisoned, beat, and strangled their kids. When the children were discovered, many of them were unable to communicate sufficiently and were not sure who the police were.

In her 911 call, Jordantold 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 plan to contact authorities was more than two years in the making and culminated as the family was planning a move from California to Oklahoma. “My plan was, okay, while we’re on the trip and in a crowd, I’m going to sneak out and call 911," Jordan told PEOPLE.

But her mother seemed especially agitated ahead of the move. 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.”

What is the Turpin family “House of Horrors?"

The Turpin Family house.Sandy Huffaker/Getty

David and Louise found other ways to use food and gifts to torture their children. Sometimes they wouldleave pies out in front of the kids, but tell them they couldn’t have any or even touch the desserts. They alsofilled their homewith unopened gifts at Christmas, never letting their children enjoy anything they brought into the home.

How did the Turpin family escape the “House of Horrors?”

Jordan Turpin.ABC

What happened to David and Louise Turpin?

David Allen Turpin and Louise Anna Turpin.Riverside County Sheriff’s Department (2)

Beecham explained to PEOPLE that when the parents were arrested, Louise didn’t seem to understand the gravity of what they had subjected their children to. He explained, “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 added.

Both David and Louise were charged with multiple counts of torture, false imprisonment and child abuse. David also received one count of a lewd act on a child under 14.

Additionally, the Turpin family patriarch received an additional charge of perjury after affidavits he submitted to the California Department of Education were reexamined. The affidavits claimed the children were enrolled in a private school.

On Feb. 22, 2019, both David and Louise pleaded guilty to 14 felony counts including cruelty to an adult dependent, child cruelty, torture and false imprisonment. They were sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole in 22 years.

Where are the Turpin family siblings now?

Jennifer and Jordan Turpin on Good Morning America.ABC News / “Good Morning America”

After their rescue, the youngest Turpin children were placed in foster care in California.

Jordan also told Sawyer that when she left her home, “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 pair appeared onGood Morning America, where they spoke about the response their story had received. Jennifer said that she had received “hundreds of DMs” and “all the love and support I’m getting, it’s overwhelming, but it’s awesome.”

Jordanalso revealedon the special that she hopes to become a motivational speaker. She said of the possibility, “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.”

In July 2022, six of the Turpin siblings filed a lawsuit against the foster parents they lived with after being rescued from their parent’s home. Their attorneys filed suits against Riverside County, ChildNet Youth and Family Services and the Foster Family Network.

The foster parents, Marcelino and Rosa Olguin,entered into plea agreementswith prosecutors in September 2024. Marcelino pled guilty to four counts of lewd acts on a child 14 or 15 years old, with the defendant being at least 10 years older; three counts of lewd acts on a child younger than 14; one count of false imprisonment; and one count of injuring a child. Rosa and the Olguins' daughter Lennys pled guilty to three counts of willful child cruelty and one count each of false imprisonment and intimidating a witness.

The following month, Marcelino wassentenced to seven years in prison, while Lennys and Rosa were each sentenced to four years of probation.

The most outspoken of the Turpin siblings, Jordan has been focused on healing from her horrific experiences with both her parents and foster parents. She moved into a new home in 2023 with her four guinea pigs and four dogs. In November of that year, she opened up to PEOPLE about her past year and hopes for the future.

“Over this last year, I havelearned a lot about mental healthand 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 October 2024,Jennifer married husband Aron, whose last name she has kept private, at The Miller Gardens in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. with her siblings there to support her. She shared photos from the gothic wedding ceremony onInstagram.

Are the Turpin family kids still close?

Jeanetta Turpin, Jennifer Turpin, and Jordan Turpin.Jordan Turpin Instagram

Jordan Turpin Instagram

Despite the horrors they survived, or perhaps because of them, the Turpin siblings have a very strong bond now. In July 2022, Jordan explained, “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 also said that she’s always watching out for her siblings. Jordan added, “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.”

source: people.com