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Published 10:46 07 Aug 2026 GMT
A survivor of California's infamous "house of horrors" has shared an emotional message of hope for the 16 children rescued from an alleged abuse case in Ohio.
Julissa Turpin was among the 13 siblings rescued from the Perris, California, home in 2018 after years of alleged abuse at the hands of her parents.
The couple later pleaded guilty to torture and child abuse after authorities discovered their children had allegedly been starved, shackled to beds, and denied a proper education.
Now, after police uncovered another alleged "house of horrors" in Hamden, Ohio, Julissa has spoken about what the 16 rescued children may experience as they begin rebuilding their lives.
The Ohio case saw Elizabeth Siders, 33, her husband Gary Siders Jr., 36, and his parents, Gary Siders Sr., 73, and Christina "Lynn" Siders, 66, arrested and charged with 16 counts each of child endangerment.
It has been alleged the children were confined inside a filthy 12-by-12-foot room covered in human waste. All four defendants have pleaded not guilty.
Speaking to NewsNation's Elizabeth Vargas Reports, Julissa acknowledged the challenges facing the children but remained optimistic.
"It's gonna be really hard to adjust, but it's definitely possible," she said. "And it's definitely possible for them to get the healing and everything that they need."
Reflecting on her own rescue, Julissa described the overwhelming feeling of freedom after escaping years of abuse.
"I was always on Cloud 9 because it was like, honestly, just being able to see a tree, just being able to breathe fresh air, that literally felt like heaven to me."
She added: "I felt like it kind of... it can't really get more scary or worse than being in that house."
Julissa credited therapy and her Christian faith with helping her process the trauma she endured. She has since bought her first home and says spending time with her siblings and dogs continues to aid her recovery.
She believes the Ohio children can eventually build fulfilling lives as well.
According to prosecutors, the children were fed little more than peanut butter or bologna sandwiches while their parents ate more substantial meals in front of them. Those who attempted to steal food were allegedly chained to filthy beds.
Their ordeal came to light after then-17-year-old Jordan Turpin escaped the home in 2018, and called 911.
David and Louise Turpin were sentenced to life in prison in 2019 after pleading guilty.
Elizabeth Siders' attorneys have now made similar claims, arguing she was herself a victim of an abusive relationship after allegedly marrying her husband when she was just 15 years old.
Julissa rejected that defence outright, "I think that is really dumb," she said. "She can be a victim, but that does not give her any excuse to do what she did to her kids."
Julissa said adjusting to normal life proved challenging, explaining that everyday social interactions were completely unfamiliar.
"I thought that people like having friends and like neighbors talking to each other and all that stuff, I thought that was like fake or just like, stuff that's in the movies or something," she said.
"I didn't know that I could actually... have a friend. I didn't know where I would get a friend."
She also found a common question confusing after leaving the home.
"It's like, 'Why is everybody asking how I am?'" she recalled. "It was so weird because it's the most common phrase ever, but it was never used. I don't remember a single time in that house, by an adult or a parent, 'How are you?' or 'Are you OK?'"
The Ohio children range in age from 18 months to 18 years old. Several required urgent medical treatment after being rescued in June, with two airlifted to Level I trauma centres because of the severity of their injuries.
Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson described the alleged conditions as "pure evil," saying investigators encountered "conditions you cannot even imagine people being in, let alone children being in."
Speaking about the children's condition, he added: "They looked like almost feral animals. It was terrible."
Vinton County Sheriff Ryan Cain also described the alleged scene as shocking, saying the children had reportedly been confined to a small room filled with human feces for nearly four years.
"Most of our livestock was kept in better conditions than the children," Cain said.
Investigators have also alleged that some of the children could not speak, while the eldest, an 18-year-old with developmental disabilities, was reportedly unable to write her own name.
Authorities have described the investigation as an "intrafamily" case, though they have not publicly explained what they mean by that term.
They have stressed that it is not being investigated as a human trafficking case and that there is no ongoing threat to the wider public.
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Published 08:46 07 Jul 2026 GMT
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The 16 children rescued from a rural Ohio home after investigators uncovered what authorities described as shocking living conditions are likely facing a long and difficult recovery, officials say.
Some of the children were reportedly unable to speak, while an 18-year-old with developmental disabilities could not even write her own name. After they were rescued from the home in the village of Hamden on June 30, seven children were taken to hospitals, including one who was in critical condition. Child welfare officials have since been granted temporary custody.
Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson said the allegations point to years of abuse, neglect and trauma that will take significant time to address. Four adults, identified as the children's parents and grandparents, have been arrested on child endangerment charges. Defense attorneys have urged the public not to reach conclusions before all the facts are presented in court.
Officials say the children's recovery may involve foster care, specialized treatment centers, or psychiatric facilities, depending on their individual needs. Ohio already faces a shortage of foster families, making placements for children with complex needs even more difficult.
"It's going to take a lot of work to address the emotional harm and some of the issues that are going to result from this," Wilson said during a news conference, per CBS News, adding he's seen nothing like the conditions that the children were subjected to.
"But we need to make sure those kids are surrounded and loved and supported by people who truly care for them," he said.
The situation has drawn comparisons to other high profile child abuse cases, including the rescue of 13 siblings from the Turpin family home in California in 2018. The children had allegedly been locked up for years and starved by their parents before 17-year-old Jordan Turpin escaped and contacted police. David and Louise Turpin later pleaded guilty to torture and years of abuse and were sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 25 years.
Experts say children rescued from severe abuse often require intensive services that many foster families are not equipped to provide.
"We have a lot of kids with significant and serious needs, not all of which unfortunately can be met by a foster family," said Scott Britton, assistant director of the Public Children Services Association of Ohio. "So we unfortunately are all too accustomed to managing a very broad range of significant deficits in children."
Britton said one in four children entering Ohio's foster care system does so because of behavioral health issues, developmental disabilities, or involvement with the juvenile justice system rather than abuse or neglect. He said residential care facilities and psychiatric treatment centers frequently have to step in to provide support.
State and federal data also show child welfare agencies across the country continue to struggle with staffing shortages, high turnover, burnout, and recruitment challenges. Britton said Ohio has invested in children's services and behavioral health resources, including a statewide Medicaid managed care plan for young people with significant behavioral health needs, but acknowledged additional support is still needed.
"I'm not saying it's enough," he said. "We could use more and a lot of it depends on where you're located."
The Turpin case also demonstrated that rescue is only the beginning of the recovery process. Six of the siblings were later placed in a foster home where they said they suffered further abuse.
The foster family pleaded guilty, and the foster father was sentenced in 2024 to seven years in prison. Riverside County and a foster care agency later reached a $13.5 million settlement with the six siblings, while attorneys said the case helped drive important improvements in the county's child welfare system.
Jennifer Turpin later spoke to ABC News about moving forward after surviving years of abuse.
"I want the Turpin name to be, like, 'Wow, they're strong, they're not broken,'" she said.
Published 16:03 03 Jul 2026 GMT
New details have emerged after 16 children were rescued from what authorities have described as a "house of horrors" in rural Ohio, with many people online drawing comparisons to one of Europe's most infamous captivity cases.
Four adults have now been charged after investigators discovered 16 children allegedly living in appalling conditions inside a home in Hamden, Ohio.
According to officials, those arrested are Gary Siders Jr., Gary Siders Sr., Christina Siders and Elizabeth Siders, who have been identified as the children's parents and grandparents. They are all facing felony child endangerment charges.
The children, whose ages range from just 18 months to 18 years old, were allegedly confined for much of their lives inside a single 12-by-12-foot room contaminated with human waste.
Speaking to WCMH, Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson described the children as being "almost feral."
The case has stunned the local community, with neighbors telling the Associated Press they had no idea so many children were living inside the property. The children were also reportedly not enrolled in school.
As investigators continue piecing together what happened, experts have questioned how such a large family managed to avoid detection for so long.
Appearing on NewsNation's CUOMO, former FBI special agent Jennifer Coffindaffer suggested the family's constant movement may have helped them stay off authorities' radar.
"You get away with it because you conceal it by moving over and over again," Coffindaffer said. "You don't let the children out of the house, and you keep them in that basement."
Criminal defense attorney Mark Geragos said the sheer age range of the children was one of the most disturbing aspects of the case.
"I think probably the thing that strikes me the most is the span of the ages," he said. "Eighteen months to 18 years is just stunning in terms of that."
Authorities have repeatedly described the children as "feral," a term Geragos said unfortunately fit the allegations.
"That's actually a pretty good use of the word," he explained. "It's not civilized, is, I guess, the best way I'd put it."
Coffindaffer also believes investigators could pursue additional charges as the case develops.
"I think there are going to be other charges," she said. "I believe these older children, the females that were able to be of childbearing years, I think they're going to have to do full DNA."
The investigation remains ongoing, and officials have not said whether the family had previously come to the attention of child protective services.
As more details have emerged, social media users have drawn comparisons to a notorious European captivity case involving an Austrian man, Josef Fritzl, who imprisoned his daughter for 24 years and fathered seven children with her inside a concealed underground space.
While there is currently no suggestion the Ohio case involves the same type of offences, some online have pointed to similarities involving prolonged isolation and children allegedly being hidden from the outside world.
One person wrote on X: "What's scary is that most people don't know their own neighbors…. There was a case like this in Austria a while ago... it was so sad. Prayers for these kids, only God's strength can help them through this. (The survivors... are living quietly, recovery takes years — their privacy is being respected and protected.)"
Authorities have not linked the two cases, and the Ohio investigation remains active as detectives continue gathering evidence.
Published 13:33 09 Jul 2026 GMT
On June 30, 16 children, aged between 18 months and 18 years old, were discovered and rescued after spending at least four years “kept in worse conditions than livestock”, and their responsible adults were arrested in Ohio.
The latest twist in the gut-wrenching story, which has gripped the nation, is that the children’s uncle, Elizabeth Siders’ brother, has spoken out about what happened to his sister and claimed that “everyone knew about it”.
Heartbreakingly, the children had suffered such “serious physical harm” that two had to be flown to specialist trauma centres, while another seven were taken to Columbus Hospitals, with one admitted to the ICU and intubated.
The children's father, Gary Siders Jr., 36, mother Elizabeth Siders, 33, and grandparents Gary Siders Sr., 73, and Christina Siders, 77, were arrested and charged with 16 counts of child endangerment. However, they have all since pleaded not guilty.
Elizabeth’s attorney Thomas Stolly told the Associated Press that Elizabeth married Gary II in 2008, when she was just 15, and their eldest daughter was born just two months later, leaving many members of the public fascinated by the case believing that she was indoctrinated by the Siders family.
As the expectant teenager was underage, both her parents, Brian Russell and Lori Ann Russell, would have had to sign the marriage certificate, as would Gary Jr’s parents, the Siders.
In a shocking revelation posted on social media by Elizabeth’s brother Jeremy Russell, the estranged family member claimed that his sister was indoctrinated and everyone knew about it.
In a series of posts, he said: “My sister just rapped her life up. Due to indoctrination. It is 100 per cent real.”
According to Russell, the siblings recently reconnected after 15 years without contact. Recalling the moment he saw his sister and her husband, he said: “I met this dude couple months ago. Shook my hand like a baby would, super soft hands. Definitely never worked a day in his life.
“I should have took him out that night. I was thinking about it but my sister. I was happy to see. Been 15 years. You lost touch with your family followed another look what happened.”
In another bold statement posted to Facebook, Russell claimed that his sister Elizabeth has 20 children, although this has not been confirmed by any officials, and only 16 children were removed from the Siders’ home.
In an attempt to silence the inevitable keyboard warriors that would criticize him for not trying to help his sister and her children, Russell told his now 6.7k followers: “I love my sister, however everyone knew about it.”
He also wrote: “I told everyone, welfare supporters to the maximum. So the state knows something. I don’t get it, just leave me alone.”
Published 15:51 24 Jul 2026 GMT
After 16 children, some with severe injuries, were rescued from a squalid home, four people, believed to be their parents and grandparents, have been charged with 17 counts of child endangerment.
The children, aged between one-and-a-half and 18, were discovered inside a crumbling house by the Vinton County Sheriff's Office in Ohio on June 30, and were described to be "kept in worse conditions than livestock”.
Law enforcement officers described the scene as “pure evil”, while Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson told a news conference they were found in “conditions you cannot even imagine people being in, let alone children being in.”
Tragically, he added: “Some of these children couldn’t even speak.”
The area the children were held captive in for “most of the last four years” was reportedly no larger than 12 by 12 feet and had a high presence of human excrement.
The house they were found in, which is believed to belong to a deceased owner, was in such terrible condition that the children were “literally about to fall through the floor,” according to Wilson.
Heartbreakingly, the children had suffered such “serious physical harm” that two had to be flown to specialist trauma centres, while another seven were taken to Columbus Hospitals, with one admitted to the ICU and intubated.
The children's father, Gary Siders Jr., 36, mother Elizabeth Siders, 33, and grandparents Gary Siders Sr., 73, and Christina Siders, 77, were arrested and charged with 16 counts of child endangerment. However, they have all since pleaded not guilty.
In the latest update, a firefighter who responded to the scene has revealed even more harrowing details about the state in which the children were found.
Captain with the Hamden Volunteer Fire Department, Jeremiah Griffith, was one of the first emergency responders on the scene after cops uncovered the hidden children.
He told The Columbus Dispatch: "Just the situation in whole was shocking."
Recalling the journey he made to the hospital with four of the children in the back, Griffith remembers them being thin and covered in scratches and bug bites.
He said the kids were: "covered in bugs and squatting and had that like distant look in their eyes.
"It was a terrible situation," Griffith said. "And children are innocent. You hate to see when they're hurt."
Griffith recalls thinking: “This is terrible. They looked like almost feral animals. It was terrible. So when we’re talking reading, writing and education, we’re talking a whole other level of expectations here. It’s hard enough just to get these kids to be able to – the 18-year-old can’t spell her name."
The 16 neglected children are now in county custody and are expected to be put in "therapeutic foster care,", according to Joel Potts, the Chief Government and External Affairs Officer for the Ohio Department of Children and Youth.
Published 22:06 19 Apr 2019 GMT
When deputies arrived at David and Louise Turpin's house in Perris, California, they discovered a horrific scene. Thirteen children, ranging in age from 2 to 29, were found held captive and severely malnourished. One 22-year-old son was shackled to a bed, and one 29-year-old daughter weighed 82 pounds. The house was filthy, and reeked of human waste.
The deputies testified that all the children aside from the toddler suffered years of abuse, torture and imprisonment: They were only allowed one meal per day. They were only allowed to shower once a year. They never saw a doctor or a dentist. They weren't allowed to play. They lived in isolation without ever leaving the home, save for an occasional family trip to Disneyland or Vegas. They were forced to sleep during the day, and stay up all night. If they didn't obey their parents, they were beaten, caged or shackled to beds.
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The abuse was so severe that it stunted the children's growth and left two girls unable to bear children, according to court testimony. What's more, all 13 children had diminished mental capacity, according to a source close to the investigation. Although the Turpins filed paperwork with California to homeschool their kids, their education was minimal at best. "We don't really do school. I haven't finished first grade," the 17-year-old said, according to Deputy Manuel Campos, per CBS News.
Deputies discovered the shocking "house of horrors" in January 2018, after a 17-year-old girl leapt out the window. She did not know the date, or the month, or what 'medication,' meant, but she did know how to dial 911 on a barely functional cell phone, and reported the abuse to a police dispatcher. After authorities arrived, they called for medical assistance and arrested the California couple. The children were hospitalized and then split up into foster care.
In February 2019, David Turpin, 57, and Louise Turpin, 50, pleaded guilty in Riverside County Superior Court to 14 felony counts, including "cruelty to an adult dependent, child cruelty, torture and false imprisonment." Their house in Perris, pictured below, was kept neat from the outside, giving neighbors no indication of the horrors within. (Perris is a city with an estimated population of 77,000, located about 70 miles east of Los Angeles and 80 miles north of San Diego.)
"My parents took my whole life from me, but now I'm taking my life back," said one girl who described living independently and attending college, per CBS News. "Life may have been bad but it made me strong. I fought to become the person that I am. I saw my dad change my mom. They almost changed me, but I realized what was happening. ... I'm a fighter, I'm strong and I'm shooting through life like a rocket."
Another sibling said he's studying to be a software engineer, and surprisingly, forgave his parents for "a lot of the things that they did to us." However, he still struggles emotionally. "I cannot describe in words what we went through growing up," he said. "Sometimes, I still have nightmares of things that had happened to us, such as my siblings being chained up or getting beaten. But that is the past, and this is now."
Some of the other Turpin children agree, and say they still love their parents. One requested a lighter sentence for them because "they believed everything they did was to protect us." In addition, she asked for them to be incarcerated in a nearby prison, so she could visit them more easily. "I believe our parents feared if they asked for help, they would lose their children," she said in her statement.
In court, Louise Turpin apologized for hurting her children, and broke down crying. "I'm sorry for everything I've done to hurt my children," she said. "I love my children so much. ... I only want the best for them... [I look] forward to the day I can see them and hug them and tell them I'm sorry."
David Turpin gave a similar statement, and was so emotional his attorney had to read a portion of it. "I never intended for any harm to come to my children," the statement said. "I'm sorry if I've done anything to cause them harm. I'm glad we were able to resolve this case without my children being forced to testify." When David Turpin recovered enough to speak, he said he hoped his children succeeded in school and in their careers.
Judge Bernard Schwartz admonished the couple for their "selfish, cruel and inhumane actions," the sentenced them to 25 years to life in prison. "The only reason your punishment is less than the maximum, in my opinion, is because you accepted responsibility at an early stage of the proceedings and spared the children from having to relive the humiliation and harm they endured in that house of horrors," Schwartz said.
"The defendants ruined lives, so I think it's just and fair that the sentence be equivalent to first-degree murder," said District Attorney Mike Hestrin at the time of the guilty plea.
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