Escape from Hell: The Heroic 911 Call that Exposed the Turpin Family Nightmare

In the stillness of the early morning hours in January 2018, a thin and trembling 17-year-old girl bolted from a nondescript home in Perris, California. She moved awkwardly along the sidewalk, clutching a deactivated cell phone that had been secretly reactivated just for this moment. For Jordan Turpin, this desperate escape was the culmination of two years of silent planning—and the beginning of a story that would horrify the world.

What began as a frightened teen calling 911 quickly unraveled into one of the most shocking and disturbing cases of child abuse in modern American history: The Turpin House of Horrors.

The Call That Changed Everything

When Jordan finally reached the corner and found a stop sign, her hands were shaking. She dialed 911 for the first time in her life. She didn’t know her exact address. She had never been allowed to go to school, never learned how to navigate her neighborhood, and wasn’t even sure how to spell her last name. But she was determined.

“I just ran away from home,” she told the dispatcher breathlessly. “I live in a family of 15. My two little sisters are chained up right now.”

The operator, clearly stunned by the statement, asked where the girls were chained.

“To their beds,” Jordan replied. “Because they stole mother’s food.”

Jordan continued with raw honesty and halting courage, detailing how her siblings—13 in total, ranging from ages 2 to 29—were regularly beaten, starved, and confined. She struggled with basic vocabulary, apologizing for “talking too much,” and explaining that she had never spoken to anyone outside her home before.

A World Without School, Medicine, or Hope

When Deputy Anthony Kachir arrived minutes later, he found a small, frail girl who looked much younger than 17. Her arms were stick-thin, her hair unkempt, and her demeanor both timid and desperate. Still, she bravely told him what she had told the dispatcher: her sisters were chained up, the children were starving, and no one in the house had any freedom.

“We don’t go to school. I haven’t finished first grade,” Jordan said.

When asked about medications, Jordan was unfamiliar with the concept. She didn’t know what medicine was, nor what pills were. The children, she explained, would get sick often and be denied help. They rarely bathed, lived in filth, and were fed once a day at most—often only frozen food or bread with peanut butter. When they vomited, they were punished.

The scene was heartbreaking not just for its cruelty, but for its precision. The abuse was systemic, consistent, and calculated to strip the children of agency, identity, and the will to resist.

The Home Behind the Smile

From the outside, the Turpin family seemed quirky but harmless. Neighbors described David and Louise Turpin as strict, religious, and odd, but there were no obvious red flags. The house in Perris, with its beige walls and closed curtains, betrayed nothing of the horror within.

Inside, however, investigators would discover a modern-day nightmare: children shackled to filthy beds, the stench of urine and feces, padlocks on the refrigerator, and a home devoid of basic necessities. The youngest were malnourished. The adults looked like teens. The 29-year-old daughter weighed just 82 pounds.

Photos and videos Jordan provided proved invaluable. She had secretly recorded the conditions inside the home—evidence that would later be used in court.

The Texas Chapter: An Ominous Prequel

Jordan also revealed to police that before moving to California, the family had lived in Texas. There, too, the abuse was widespread. Neighbors in the rural Texas town where the Turpins had once lived described the family as reclusive. When the Turpins abruptly left, they abandoned nearly a dozen children in a filthy mobile home.

One neighbor who entered the home to care for the dogs was horrified: the floor was covered in feces and garbage, and the children had been left to fend for themselves. Padlocks and ropes adorned the bunk beds. The dogs, it was later discovered, had survived by scavenging dirty diapers left behind.

This pattern of abandonment and neglect pointed to years of premeditated abuse.

The Parents: Monsters in Disguise

David and Louise Turpin presented themselves as loving parents on social media. Photos posted online showed the family dressed in matching outfits, smiling awkwardly at Disneyland or celebrating birthdays. But the reality behind the camera was one of domination, psychological control, and torment.

The Turpins used religion as a tool of manipulation. They convinced their children that the outside world was evil, and that obedience to their parents was obedience to God. Education, medical care, friendships, and freedom were luxuries the children were told they didn’t deserve.

In truth, the Turpin parents lived a dual life: strict and abusive at home, yet obsessed with appearances and fantasy in public.

Justice and Freedom

After Jordan’s call, Riverside County authorities quickly obtained a search warrant and entered the Turpin home. What they found confirmed every word of Jordan’s harrowing testimony. The children, underfed and terrified, were immediately removed and given medical care, therapy, and protective custody.

In 2019, David and Louise Turpin pleaded guilty to 14 counts, including torture, false imprisonment, child cruelty, and dependent adult abuse. They were sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 25 years.

The Road Ahead

The Turpin children were promised a second chance at life—but the challenges they face are enormous. After years of isolation, many struggle with basic life skills, education gaps, and psychological trauma. Some were placed in foster care, where further abuse unfortunately occurred, sparking fresh outrage and a call for reform in the child welfare system.

Jordan Turpin, however, has emerged as a symbol of resilience. She has spoken publicly about her experiences, advocating for her siblings and other victims of abuse. Her 911 call didn’t just save lives — it exposed a system that failed these children for decades and forced the world to pay attention.

Conclusion

Jordan Turpin’s voice cracked, trembled, and hesitated — but it did not falter. Her courage, forged in silence and desperation, lit the path to justice for her siblings and herself. Her call exposed not just the darkness within a home, but the cracks in a society that overlooked it for too long.

The Turpin case is a chilling reminder of what can happen when abusers hide behind closed doors and smiling photos — and the remarkable power of one brave voice willing to break free

Full video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31AZ3x17Aq0