In 2018, Jordan Turpin bravely escaped from her tortuous home in the end saving her and her 12 siblings lives. For their whole lives, the Turpin siblings were shut out from the world by their parents David Allen Turpin and Louise Ann Turpin.
The severity of abuse is beyond imaginable. When found, the children were shackled to beds, malnourished, and living in a house that was filled with garbage, feces and mold. This was not their first house as after they left their previous one, feces, garbage, dead animals, and chains were also found throughout.
The siblings suffered detrimental brain damage from the abuse, they lacked basic knowledge of the world. This included not knowing who the police were and what medicine is (The Independent). The children were found with bruises and dirt on them as they were allowed to shower once a year and eat once a day (NBC News).
4 years later, the Turpin Siblings are all in different places as their ages range from 2 to 29. Some are in foster care while others are living on their own.
Unfortunately they still do not have access to all they were promised. This includes donations, resources, shelter and a better life.
The children that were placed in foster care suffered abuse yet again for three years.
They have since been removed from the home and the abusers were arrested and charged (New York Post). This is devastating as abuse is what they left but many siblings were placed in an abusive home again for years. One sibling has been assaulted since and some have been found to be couch surfing. Many of the siblings have been put in too high crime areas and unsafe homes.
The trust funds set up for the Turpin siblings is controlled by the courts. This makes it nearly impossible for the children to access it like they were promised when they were rescued.
Many of the children still lack basic knowledge of the world such as managing money and finding housing. Though they were offered and promised programs to help them learn these things they have not been set in place.
Vanessa Espinoza, the deputy public guardian assigned to seven children, failed in giving them the life they were promised. She was in charge of providing food, housing, health support and helping them find their way through the world. She failed to do so. Some of the children said that when she came to her with a question she would tell them to “just google it” (ABC News).
The treatment of this case has opened the eyes to many. There are countless flaws in the court system and foster care system that still continue to this day. The Turpin case has brought light to the darkness of the system, this is not the only case that has been treated this way. Unfit people are running the systems and not doing their job as they are risking others lives.
The system has failed the Turpin siblings.
