California Couple Who Held 13 Malnourished Children Chained Appear in Court to Face Torture Charges

By Heather Clark - Posted at Christian News Network:

“As a prosecutor, there are cases that stick with you, that will haunt you,” he [Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin] stated. “Sometimes in this business, we’re faced with looking at human depravity—and that’s what we’re looking at here.”

PERRIS, Calif. — The California couple accused of holding their 13 children captive in their home, allowing them to have one meal a day and chaining some to their beds as punishment, appeared in court on Thursday to face multiple charges that carry a penalty of up to 94 years behind bars.

Attorneys for David Turpin, 56, and Louise Turpin, 49, entered not guilty pleas for 12 counts of torture, six counts of abuse of a dependent adult, six counts of child abuse or neglect and 12 counts of false imprisonment. David Turpin is also charged with one count of committing a lewd act on a child by force.

Some charges only reflected 12 children since the youngest, age 2, appeared in the best condition of all of the siblings.

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