Turpin Family Update: Will The Tortured And Abused Children Testify In Court?

Turpin Family Update Children — The Turpin children are "improved" since they left their family home, where they were tortured and abused by their parents Louise and David Turpin for years. David and Louise Turpin, the parents who allegedly held their 13 children captive, appear in court on February 23, 2018 in Riverside, California where each have been charged with 12 counts of torture, 12 counts of false improsonment, seven counts of abuse of a dependent adult and six counts of child abuse, with the father also charged with one count of a lewd act on a child under the age of 14 by force, fear or duress, of fear or duress, of which they have pleaded not guilty. Getty Images/Damian Dovarganes

On Friday, David and Louise Turpin, the California parents accused of abusing and torturing 12 of their 13 children, will be sentenced for their alleged crimes. At the time of sentencing, the couple may hear from the children they kept captive in what is being called a House of Horrors.

Because the children may testify in court, Jack Osborn, the lawyer for the Turpin children told CNN, it would be “a tough day for everyone involved – very emotional.”

"Right now, the children are deciding on whether they will be there, or speak. It's up to each one of them,” he added.

During sentencing, it is expected that the prosecutor will testify while some of the adult children present in the courtroom, CNN reported.

At the time that police arrived at the Turpin’s Perris, California home in January, the children were found shackled to their beds, emaciated, and living in filthy conditions. The children ranged in ages from two to 29.

According to investigators, the children were isolated from the outside world, unable to shower, did not receive medical care or food. The children were often tied up for “weeks or even months at a time,” Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin said last year.

The abuse and torture ended when a 17-year-old daughter of the couple escaped the home through a window and called 911 for help. The girl had planned her escape for more than two years, using a deactivated cellphone found in the house, according to the news outlet.

The Turpins pleaded guilty to 14 charges of torture, adult abuse, child endangerment, and false imprisonment. They accepted a plea deal in the case and are expected to serve a life sentence with eligibility for parole in 25 years.