INSIDE THEIR NEW WORLD
After years of unspeakable horror, David and Louise Turpin’s 13 kids are on the mend and discovering what it feels like to be free
The first song Mark Uffer played for the seven eldest Turpin kids was John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads.” The CEO of California’s Corona Regional Medical Center thought music therapy would help the young men and women, who, prosecutors say, spent the past few years barely surviving inside the Perris, Calif., house of horrors their parents, David and Louise Turpin, created for them and their six younger siblings. Uffer was surprised when they began singing along in clear, beautiful voices, he says: “Tears started running down the nurses’ faces.” Now, in the two months since police finally freed them — following a daring escape and 911 call by the 17-yearold daughter — the Turpins are learning to play their own music, such as “Learning to Fly” by Tom Petty. “They fell in love with the song,” says Uffer. “They seem to understand it.”
They’re living it. As David, 56, and Louise, 49, face dozens of counts of torture and false imprisonment and multiple counts of child abuse, their children, who range in age from 2 to 29, are finally getting a chance to live a normal life, including figuring out how to perform everyday tasks — from brushing their teeth to surfing the internet — that most people take for granted. And they don’t want pity. Now released from the hospital, “the adult siblings want to be known as survivors, not victims,” says their lawyer, Jack Osborn. (The two youngest children are in one foster home and the other four minors are in another nearby; the seven adult Turpin kids remain together.) “They’re joyful, warm, considerate,” says Osborn. “They’re really full of joy about their life and the things they get to experience right now.”
STARTING OVER The Turpins are undergoing massive amounts of therapy, but when they’re not in counseling, they’re eager to enjoy life’s small pleasures. Mostly denied outside contact, education and even food (the 29-year-old daughter weighed just 82 pounds when rescued), the Turpins are wideeyed about each experience. They have now been taught how to brush their teeth, wash their hair and use seat belts — and had to be coaxed to try tomatoes and berries for the first time. Growing up, one of the only things they were allowed to eat was peanut butter sandwiches. Now, says Osborn, “They love any food that is fresh. They love fruit, pasta and soup.” Upon their recent release from the hospital, the kids — who also have learned to use ipads and keep in touch via Skype — all picked citrus fruits and made ice cream sundaes. Another source of joy: movies. The kids love the Star Wars and Harry Potter franchises.
They’re also learning to fend for themselves. “We’re hopeful they can learn a lot of life skills, from shopping for groceries to cooking,” Uffer says, noting that they didn’t even understand how to use money. Some things come easier than others, however: When they were still in the hospital, they were so afraid their new shoes would be taken away, they slept with them on. Adds Uffer, “It’s going to take some work.”
Another hurdle: confronting their past. Prosecutors have said that some of the kids will testify against David and Louise, who have both pleaded not guilty to the charges against them. But the kids are resilient. “For all the things that have allegedly been done to them,” Uffer says, “they still have the capacity to love and trust people who have been good to them. Their spirit has not been crushed.” ◼