Judge bars parents in California abuse
case from contacting 13 children
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[January 25, 2018]
By Tori Richards
RIVERSIDE, Calif. (Reuters) - A judge on
Wednesday barred a Southern California husband and wife from contacting
the 13 children they are charged with beating, shackling and starving in
their suburban home, a ruling the couple's attorney did not oppose.
The judge imposed the restrictions on David Turpin, 57, and his wife
Louise, 49, during a brief hearing in a grim case that has drawn
worldwide media attention and calls for better oversight of
home-schooled children.
The parents are accused of keeping their 13 children, ages 2 to 29, in
filthy and fetid conditions, chaining some to their beds and using
starvation as a weapon to control them. Each parent faces 94 years to
life in prison if convicted on more than two dozen charges, including
torture, child abuse and false imprisonment.
The couple were at Wednesday's court hearing, handcuffed and shackled to
their chairs.

"You must not harass, strike, threaten, assault, follow, stalk, molest,
destroy or damage property of or disturb the peace of, keep under
surveillance or block the entrance of the people listed in the order,"
Riverside County District Judge Emma Smith told the defendants.
"You must not try to get their addresses or locations and must have no
electronic, telephone or written communication. You must not contact
them except through your lawyer. You can’t use a third party other than
your lawyer, including an investigator,” Smith said.
The Turpins were arrested on Jan. 14 after their malnourished
17-year-old daughter climbed out a window of the family home in Perris,
about 70 miles (110 km) east of Los Angeles and called the 911 emergency
number on a cellphone.
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David Turpin listens to his lawyer as he appears with his wife (not
shown) in court in Riverside, California, U.S. January 24, 2018.
REUTERS/Mike Blake

The protective order was sought by Riverside County prosecutors and
was not opposed by defense attorneys.
"It protects everyone involved, including my client," attorney Dave
Macher, who represents David Turpin, said of the order. "I don’t
want to expose him to accusations that he harassed, tampered with or
attempted to persuade a witness not to testify or to get them to
change their testimony. We want to avoid that."
A lawyer for Louise Turpin declined to comment to reporters outside
court.
Neither one of the defendants spoke during the hearing.
Prosecutors have called the case an example of “human depravity,”
saying the children were denied food, basic hygiene and medical care
and were punished for perceived infractions such as washing their
hands above the wrist.
(Reporting by Tori Richards in Riverside; Writing by Dan Whitcomb in
Los Angeles; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
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