And That's Why We Drink - E472 Milkshake Tears and a Lego Hair Wig

Episode Date: March 1, 2026

It’s episode 472 and we’re crying over milkshakes! This week Em covers the wild lore of Scrim the dog from New Orleans aka the Houdini dog. Then Christine revisits an old case covered back in Episode 57 to bring us the updates - the Turpin family. And is that Christine falling asleep again on the podcast? …and that’s why we drink!Photo Links:Scrim at the City Council MeetingScrim’s Jump VideoTurpin Family PhotosCatch our bonus Yappy Hour intermissions on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3L28lDw or subscribe on Patreon: http://patreon.com/ATWWDPodcast!___________________Let Rocket Money help you reach your financial goals faster. Join at https://RocketMoney.com/DRINK Join the loyalty program for renters at http://joinbilt.com/drink and use our URL so they know we sent you.Go to https://quince.com/drink for free shipping and 365-day returns on high-quality wardrobe staples from Quince, now available in Canada.Switch to Mint Mobile and, for a limited time, get unlimited premium wireless for just $15/month—visit https://mintmobile.com/ATWWD to start saving.Go to https://helixsleep.com/drink for 27% off sitewide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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I'm still on my stroblum. 99 strablums. I'm telling you, I can't get enough of this. Like, Shake Shack, whoever you are. Oh, wait a minute. Actually, I have the most, and that's why we drink, reason why I drink, and Shake Shack is involved. And this is not a sponsor, by the way, but.

I'm settling in. Shake Shack, if you're listening, if someone works at Shake Shack, I need you to bring this at the top. I don't know what the fuck they thought they were doing recently, but they decided to put their whole chest into their goddamn menu. Because I don't, well, I'm about to ruin our whole. sponsorship here. The food I don't totally care for, but the drinks, the shrinks really get me going. The non-existent partnership, we invented for two seconds and then immediately squashed.

They were listening, like, ready to sign the check and then they threw it in the trash. They went, never mind. I don't think I've ever even eaten at Shake Shack. Like, I'm totally out of the loop. This, oh, okay, so one of the reasons that I do love them, they are open until, like, one in the morning, and you know, I need my fix when I'm doing my notes late at night. But this strawberry lemonade really has such a chokehold on me. It's insane. And then they have, and then they have, have milkshakes, which they actually have one of my favorite milkshakes, which is the, it's confusing because they have a black and white milkshake and they have a chocolate and vanilla

milkshake. Oh. Get the chocolate and vanilla milkshake. That's the one, by the way. However, the reason I drink, I've never had a more since like episode one, milkshake reason why I drink is because they came out with a Valentine's Day milkshake that has rocked my shit. And I'm so mad.

I was introduced to her because she's going to leave. She's fleeting. Oh, isn't that the best? though. Oh my God. Like water. You're like, I'm like tearing up.

Holy shit. Oh, watch. I love it so much. All right. We're not fucking around here anymore, people. I don't know what's wrong with me. Actually,

it wasn't even about, I don't know what it was. I think the light hit my eye, but that was perfect acting, wasn't it? You were just like overcome. Really came at the right moment. Thanks, sunlight. No,

I'm going to cry because I cry when other people cry. What's happening? Oh, I don't know what's going on. I love her. Let me go. Hang on. I got to go find what this. No one's ever reacted this way about loving me.

I'm starting to feel inadequate. So it's, okay, it's their true love milkshake. It's called true love. Oh, no wonder if you're crying. You're really in it. You're really in it. She's not going to be here forever. Whoever is working for Shake Shack and is listening to this,

you need to bring this to the top immediately because they need to keep this as a permanent staple. They literally, you know what magic shell is that like it like hardens. Yes, I love it. They literally, not like how like a coffee shop will like drizzle a little caramel. Like they literally coat the whole thing so the cup looks brown. And then they put a milkshake in it so it stays hard. And then as you drink the milkshake, it slowly falls into the milkshake.

And so you can like eat chunks of the hard chocolate. So good. And it's a strawberry kind of, so it's like chocolate covered strawberries for like the Okay. I actually have currently a chocolate covered strawberry iced coffee because Blazboise bought chocolate covered strawberry coffee creamer and I put it in some like cold brew and it's so good and I was going to say it made me think of you and now I know you have the same oh my gosh what a what a season of life I can't and everybody anybody who knows me knows that chocolate cover strawberries

they're not even romantic to me that's just that's the that's the end game that's the end game food right there um that's a death row food for me and you really didn't think it was um romantic but like you're literally crying over it so maybe it was more romantic than you thought There's there's no one who yearns for this milkshake. Like I want to be yearned the way I yearn for this milkshake. I mean, me too. Get it together. Like after seeing your face, I'm like, damn, I feel inadequate compared to this fucking

house. Allison's literally never cried over me. And I'm here I am in the morning about a milkshake. Wow. Christine, if you, I'm not, I'm literally not, if you're ever going to have a milkshake, you have to have this one. It's so good. Okay.

I do love a milkshake. Like, every few months, I'm like, I need a milkshake today. So maybe that'll be my next one. I'm sure there's one around here somewhere. we also need a paycheck because I just really gave shake shack the deal of it off like the deal of a lifetime that was incredible that was the deal of a lifetime oh oh oh on the show you mean yeah yeah I was like we no one no one even no one paid us but like wow you ought to because I'll never speak so highly about a milkshack

in my entire life they really knew what they're doing with that it was so good and that's why we drink sent you and they're going to be like what what does that mean we don't care like we're a mafioso and we're like they'll know what it means yes then I'm sent me. I can't wait to drink it again. And by the way, I think I'm the only person on Earth who ever says this. But one of my other favorite foods is chocolate pudding. They have a chocolate pudding bullshit right now.

What is going on over there? It's like they heard my... It's like they read my diary and went, okay, we got it. We're on it. They kind of did, I think, because you know what I say? Perception creates reality. You want to live in a world with pudding milkshakes? Here you go.

It's like lucky girl syndrome. It's like I'm so lucky that there could be one of those out there. And then all of them showed up at one in the morning when I needed it most. That's what happens, man. It's beautiful. The end. That's why I drank. I'm really impressed.

I'm happy for you. I'm happy for you. Why do I drink? Well, oh, I know I drink because I sold out twice. I was so honored and thrilled. I sold out twice of the abolished ice little devil stickers. And because I wasn't on camera last time, I can just show it here. I think I have one on here.

Oh, yeah, we weren't on camera. Right. We were not on camera. Oops. And I was so impressed. because like I or surprise like pleasantly surprised because I sold out and then I sold out again and I was like I got to close this damn store before because I'm I don't have enough and so um here's a little sticky guy if if you're watching and you haven't seen it um but I so I sold like I think like

400 of them and all the proceeds are going to the national immigrant uh justice center and I'm really excited and I'm like wow I feel very uh thankful for everybody who bought a sticker and um maybe I will restock them. I'm not sure yet, but it's, oh, this is why I drink. This is why I drink because I went to ship them all out. And I was like, this time I'm going to be on top of it and I'm going to do it. And I printed them all out and they're getting labeled and all of a sudden I realized something odd. All the streets, all the zip codes and cities are different.

But the street address somehow I had copy and paste it into 400 address labels, but not the like city and state and zip so I didn't notice it. So it was just kind of, it was like one, three, four highway Ave or something, but that was for all of them. And I'm just so glad those didn't get mailed out. And then 400 of them came back to my PO box. Like I would have been, it would have kicked me out. I bet you'd have to differ.

One, two, three, four highway Ave would have had so many sickers. In every different city in America, just like dropped off at the highway. Yeah. Anyway, that was extremely cringy behavior at my part. But all that to say, I'm going to try again later. I ordered new shipping labels. So I got to try that again. But I'm working on it.

So if you have not received your degree, I promise I'm working on it. But they should go out any day now. So that's why I drink because I looked at it and went, are you fucking going to be. Like I spent hours doing that. There's nothing more frustrating than thinking, oh, I'm actually going to, I can feel it in my bones. I can be productive today. And then it ends up backfrying and you're like, well, I should have never even tried. It was so organized.

everything had like rubber band in a folder and like was organized in a container and then I'm like what the fuck did I do I got ahead of myself see sometimes lucky girl syndrome works and then other times like it's the optimism I feel like it was actually the poison where I'm like oh I I this is gonna be great this is gonna be that's the delusion you have to kind of suffer through as part of it you know that's just kind of part it's like um collateral damage sort of you just kind of be a little delusional I you know what yes yes Yeah. What do you drink?

Oh, you have your little chalk chug. Oh, no, look at that. That's like a nice little, I got a straw, 99 strawblums. Yep. I'm telling you. I love, I love her. I don't know what she's, oh. Every time I take a sip of her, I literally have to contain myself.

I'm like, oh, you know. Now, are we talking the lemonade or the milkshake now? That's a good question. Is it both? Or can no those dose. Okay, okay. Bing, bong, I love money. and luckily I have more of it now because Rocket Money has saved me in so many different ways.

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Join the loyalty program for renters at joinbilt.com slash drink. That's J-O-I-N-B-I-T dot com slash drink. Make sure to use our URL so they know that we sent you. I have a story for you, and I really did think that this was going to be, it was going to not take as long. I thought I was going to read, like, one newspaper article and we were going to be out of here. That's what I kind of thought was going on. I was wrong. So,

Oh, no. It's not, it's not like this, me telling it will be probably of average length, but I really thought I was going to have to, anyway, I thought I was going to have to force the narrative, and I don't have to. So I'm scared to do this story because it is, we're, we're bending the rules today. However, I did get your permission last time. Oh, yes. and I already forget what it is, but I remember being like, hell yeah.

So everyone just be kind to me. And you'll like it anyway. So like back up. Okay? Whoa. Actually, back the fuck up, everybody. Whoa. This is a story of a little puppy dog.

See, everyone's already happy. And he doesn't die and he doesn't become a ghost. So that's kind of the problem, though, is that he's not, this is not paranormal. However, we found a way to stretch the truth. Last week when you called it an urban legend. It's not even a stretch of truth. I think this dog will live in the lore for century. Like I feel like this will be a local legend, you know.

He is a local legend already. And the New York Times actually called him a mythical creature. And so I'm like, well, I'm using it. I'm running with it. You got to. You got to. So this is Scrim, the dog of New Orleans. Oh, I'm so excited.

And again, this is probably the happiest story we ever will tell because nobody dies in either of our stories. It's incredible. So Scrim, let's see. Take me back. Take me back, Christine. 2023. We know it well. 2023. It's all a blur. It sure is. So now imagine a little white terrier. Oh, little puppy.

That is the picture I sent you earlier that I told you not to look at. This is Scrim for your eyes. Oh, my God. I forgot how cute he is. Oh, my. And he looks like the dog from Annie. Yes, yes. You know. Oh, my God. Right? Sandy. No. He does not look like.

Sandy. Oh, I've never seen it. Sandy colored. Wait, what? You just shouted out. He just hopes that you'd be right. Okay. I feel like I'm right.

Well, okay. You find out. He looks like him. I think you're a liar. Hang on. Sandy, dog, Annie. Maybe we watch different versions of Sandy.

I have not watched any versions. I told you that already. Okay. that one, that's not, that's not the right one. Okay, everybody, in case anyone's wondering, Christina's working off of the most recent Disney channel. I don't know what that is. It just appeared.

No. Okay, fine. Yeah, that dog's bigger. You're right. Not the same of the one. Okay, fine. It's a little bigger. It reminds you of a dog from something, though. Is it Toto maybe? But Toto's white, right? Girl, first of all, this dog's white, which would make them identical. No, it's not. Is it? Toto is black. Have you ever met a dog? What are you talking?

about it. But you're totally right. He looks like, he looks like a dog I've seen before. It looks just like Jude Law. I can't unsee it. I'm like so, talk about delusional, man. I really have lost the fucking plot today. There is something about him that seems so similar. I mean, for people wondering, he looks kind of like a Westy. Yeah. But he looks like a little darker. I don't know if that's the lighting of the picture or not, but he, you know, he reminds me of, which is funny it sounds like scamp from the sequel of lady and the tramp that's what i meant yep i thought so not that i've seen that either helping you out left and right here um look up scamp i feel like you have a better shot at agreeing with me there scamp from lady and the tramp it's like tramp son

no it was nothing like him okay we're both bad at those okay no i think i just have like really off the deep end i think like probably more people will agree with you no i think actually i googled scamp too and I think that he was wrong in my eyes. Whatever, everybody, he's a fucking Westy. Okay. So, or we don't even know that. They keep calling him a wiry-haired terrier mix, but he looks like a Westy. And so, 2023, this little puppy shows up on the scene, hot trot.

He's found in a trailer park, and now we're outside of New Orleans. We do not know if he was a stray that happened to be going through this trailer park, or if he was, like, someone's free roam dog. You know what I mean? either way regardless of his origin story he was captured and taken in by an animal shelter and it seemed that when they took him in they assumed he was astray and not someone's dog because he seemed like he had a checkered past he seemed like he had a rough life um so i don't know hopefully they did not kidnap him from someone's yard but i don't think that's the case either

because nobody ever looked for him. You know what I mean? The irony, because you'll find out. So this animal shelter took him in. However, it was a kill shelter. Oh, no. They named him Michael. Why would you name something you're going to kill?

I was about to go, uh, wait. Big Mike, big Mike. I was literally ready to say on to whatever the fuck you said. And then Michael came through and I went, actually, that's a hard no from me. Not even like Mikey, you know, like, what are you doing? Yeah. And he doesn't look like a Michael. No.

What dog looks like a Michael? Not Scamp or the one from Annie or anything like that. None of them. They all look exactly the same, but none of them look like a Michael. So they named him Michael just to then like threaten euthanasia on him because nobody was adopting him. Well, maybe they name him Michael because then they get less attached. That's true. They're like, it's just a random guy, you know.

It's just Mike. Just Mike. You know, he won't be missed. That can't be true. I don't know. I don't know either. I don't understand the concept of naming a dog, I guess, just to put something on the paperwork. But anyway, unfortunately, this kill shelter was considering slating Michael for euthanasia.

Which is super crazy if they, quote, rescued him from a trailer park where he, like, might have just been at home. And now they're going to, like, leave him and fill him. Yeah, well, so my cat was, one of our childhood cats was picked up on, and he's an outdoor cat or indoor outdoor cat. and he's older and he got picked up by animal control, like right on our property, but on the driveway area. And they brought him in and cut off the tip of his ear. And then when we finally got a hold of him,

they tried to charge my mom for like, because they said, oh, we cut off the ear tips if the cat is not neutered. And my mom's like, well, the cat is neutered. And they're like, yeah, but we didn't know that. And my mom was like, the fuck well that's not my problem and so they tried to charge her because they had already given him anesthesia to do the operation and they were like oh he's already neutered so they cut off his ear

and then billed us like 300 bucks and we were like he's already neutered you can't do that anyway they can do that and that and that man works for the trump administration now because that sounds just evil and stupid and it's just a lot yeah it's like i know there's an adultery chaos for nobody and pain like why can you imagine someone just coming i'm just cutting your fucking ear off and then going, whoops, I guess I wasn't supposed to. He's like the scragiliest, funniest cat now. He's like, talk about been through it, you know? Yeah.

What's his name? Marco. Michael. What if I said his name is Michael? I was literally about to say Mark and Mike, really? Marco, not Mark. Sorry, that makes a different, yeah. Okay.

Mark would be wild. Somehow just like the absence of the O makes it crazy. It just because it just sounds like a straight white man now. Exactly. I mean, I've told you about Joshua at the dog park. I can't even get into it today. that's right so sorry i don't know how to sneeze quietly i've never learned the skill that's okay i think josh would just do that open face in front of him sometime wait what's with

joshua again that fucking dog i hate oh oh right your mortal enemy i hate that dog and then one of my friends was very nice and and took hang to the park the other day and i did not think joshua would be there so i didn't warn her and we came home and she was like who the fuck is that dog joshua and i went i know hate that goddamn dog. Don't even get me started. I'm pretty sure that's what I said. I was like, I can't even with that right now. Okay, so Michael's about to get euthanized.

And in the 11th hour, I'm assuming, for the cinematic effect. Of course. All of a sudden, Michelle Sherimi, Sharami, I'm not totally sure of how to pronounce her name, but Michelle, she runs Zeus's rescue, a non-kill shelter. And I guess part of her job is going. into actual kill shelters and rescuing those dogs and then putting them in her rescue. Hey, that's a really tough job, dude. Love that. She scooped up Michael real quick.

Wow. She renamed him Scrim, which somehow better than Michael. Definitely. And she, I guess it was after a local rapper. Oh, I didn't know that. I did look him up and scrim the rapper. His S is a dollar sign. Oh, well, hell yeah.

So I like to imagine if we're going like real one for one. naming him after the rapper, then this dog also has a dollar sign. Which is so much more kick-ass than Michael. No offense. Agreed. Not a dollar sign to be found with Michael. So he's named after a rapper,

and the rescue tried their best to help him. They tried to re-socialize him for many months, but he was horribly timid. Michelle has worked in this industry for like over 20 years, and she described him as catatonic, terrified, and whatever happened to him before this rescue, quote, could have not been good. Oh, honey. After over 20 years of rescuing dogs, she said that he was one of the most shut down scared

dogs who needed lots of love. And they got to a point where they just couldn't do anything. He was just going to be forever categorized as a scared puppy. But a few months into helping him, they did find a couple interested in adopting Skrim. and the couple took Scrim home for essentially a test trial to see if they were compatible before signing papers. And that same day, Scrim bolted. Horrible. Imagine, like, you finally think you found the puppy gone.

And then what do you tell the shelter? And you haven't even signed papers yet. You were like, Oh, oh. That's got to feel bad. He basically found a way off his leash, and he got under the fence and just... Poor baby. One article was quoted.

saying on the first night at his new home, Scrim became the fugitive he is known as today. That's where it all began. That's origin story. So, and also, like, realistically, I wonder if his actual origin story in the trailer park was he already bolted from someone else. Like a fugitive on the run already.

He's on the lamb, you know? Always on the lamb. Every single article used the phrase on the lamb with this stuff. No. See, it's like sometimes true crime reporting is fun to do when it's not about true crime. And it's, like, actually happy. The only happier story.

As the Poltergeist, whoa, maybe. A paranormal in general I met to say. As the paranormal side of this, I never get to hear the like, what jargon is pretty common and true crime recording. Oh, right. You don't read these articles, right. The closest I've got is like Captain Craig on SVU saying he wants another foot in someone's ass, you know? That's actually pretty accurate. I would say most articles say something along this.

Or, you know, what's the one that Law & Order always says? Oh, a fishing expedition. We don't want another fishing expedition. A fishing expedition. I love to go fishing. I hate it, actually. So, okay, takes off. This couple, I'm sure, is fully panicked.

Very quickly, they reach out to the rescue. The couple and the rescue were both putting out flyers all over town. And I don't know what marketing they have, but they should go into advertising because their flyers garnered so much attention that people all over New Orleans started looking for him. In the way that if anyone lost their dog, you hope people get into action.

That you would just wish you could get that word out to the point that everyone was, yeah, that's such a good point. It was a day where the spirit of community was inside everybody. It's so rare to see that, you know? Yeah, I don't know, I don't know what they did. Maybe the reward money was like incredible or something. An unlikely hero. No, even when the reward money is high, like even in true crime for real, like people don't

organize like this, you know? Yeah, this is, ironically, this is the search party everybody wants on their side. Yeah, I think he like just touched that many people's hearts that they were like moved by this, yeah. I guess so. They didn't even know him though yet. They would, like, it was just this rescue who knew a puppy, and then he just bolted at this couple's house.

What were the flyers that made it so successful? I don't, I mean, I saw the flyers and they just looked like normal flyers. It was just like. Maybe there's something about, is his picture on it? I think so, yeah. I wonder, like, maybe he just looks. Maybe he has, like, um, oh. Yeah, the, so the main one is lost, don't change.

white dog brown spots text grimm's location too and then the phone number wow i mean you're right it's very simple yeah so it was um i don't know what was going on that day just everyone was ready to be a village i think it's also the very clear um call to action text his location to this number because like it's not like oh sure missing dog and then you don't know what to do or there's a phone number at the bottom are you supposed to call it but just to say like if you see him just say where he is yeah yeah text i feel like that is a clear that's kind of a good note for I don't know

because it's also like maybe you can't rescue him but if you see him let me know right exactly like at least then you can alert them as to what neighborhood he's in well so very very quickly they you know they put the flyers out and all of New Orleans just decided this was the dog we all give a shit about so they made literal search

parties I would love to know what was going on that day that moved everybody but yeah like made search parties where like strangers were crawling under abandoned houses looking to see if he was hiding because they knew he was like scared. Wow. They tried luring him out with Popeyes, which would have worked on me, did not work on him.

How many other dogs and or M's do you think they discovered along the way as they were like luring, luring animals out with Popeyes from under abandoned houses? Like raccoons and rice. That should be just crawling out like the girl from the ring for the chicken. Do you have that strawberry chocolate milkshake? If I ever go missing, tell Shake Shack to put me on every milkshake cup. I'm just going to wharf that smell around. you know, until you come running.

They even, like, started, like, online forums called scrim spottings, where they would just put in all of their updates if anyone had seen him. And basically what really sealed his stardom was the fact that this was not a missing dog. Every single person saw this dog somewhere through the town, and they just couldn't get to them fast enough. Yes. And so I think that was what, like, very quickly spurred the interest. because it's not like, oh, there's a dog flyer,

and I'll probably never see that dog on. Everybody saw this dog. And so it became almost like, like, you know in high school and everyone started playing that one like murderer spoons game or something where everyone got weirdly involved? Do you know what I'm talking about? I mean, I made people play that at my birthday party in middle school, but I don't know if that's like what.

I don't remember the name of the game. I just remember in high school for some reason it became a thing where it was just like this mass game where people were trying to like clip clothespins and shit to each other and stuff. No, no, I didn't not participate in that. I don't know. That sounds like fun, but I didn't, I don't remember that. It just became this weird mind hive where it was like, it starts at 400 people and there's only going to be one winner. Well, and now, I mean, nowadays we have like TikTok and everybody will know about it within minutes, you know, like, and every school will have this thing.

Yeah. So I feel like it's, it was primed to be a viral thing. Yeah. Well, I feel like everybody was like, if everybody's seeing him, who's going to be the one to catch him? And so it became almost like this like weird contest, it felt like, for people to try to get scrim because they wanted to be the one that made it into the paper. Like, we got him. Oh, my lord. But people, I mean, it's 2023.

People had phones. And so just if you were in the algorithm of 2023, I suppose, there was just video after video of people almost getting him. Like, we saw him again. Over here. We saw him here. Also the fact that he's not just hiding, you know, like a lot of times when an animal will go, they'll find a spot and like stay hide out. where there might be food near a dumpster. But yeah, the fact that he's like all over town to the point they're mapping it out,

you know, it's just remarkable. It sounds like a Disney movie. Yeah. I just imagine like really like lovely flouncy pouncy music behind him. And everyone else is actually just screaming. She's like, run. Well, people were so excited to try to get him that when the videos would come out, it started churning more and more interest.

And so people outside New Orleans also started following what script was up to. people started knowing him as the Houdini dog and some people called him the dog who refused to be homed and so many people were able to almost catch him but when I say he was just too fast there were people on like 15 mile an hour scooters trying to chase after him and he was just like they were eating his dust like he was going at least 20 miles an hour when he ran and so that's why on the flyers it says do not chase

because they're like, you're not, you're not going to get them. It got to the point where Michelle and the rescue decided that the only way that they could catch this dog, because they were just inundated with just texts nonstop. Because if one person posted a video saying he's right here, then three blocks later they'd get another text. He's right here. He's right here. Eventually they were like, the only way to get this fucking dog is with a goddamn tranquilizer. And so they literally, like, I guess Michelle started practicing like blow darts or some shit like that or, or,

The fuck. She, our tranquilizer gun. She started practicing shooting with a tranquilizer gun at something that was Scrim-sized in case she ever saw him just to be able to like on-site get him. And they even had to hire marksmen from Texas to come into town because they knew how to use tranquilizer blowdarts for animals. What the fuck?

But get this. So then the Texas marksman who is really good at blowdarts, he literally found scrim, blew a blow dart at him full of tranquilizer. and this dog somehow just metabolized it. It basically went and just kept on running. Oh my God. He is. Can't he be free or are we just like not letting him be free?

Is it like he's, it just feels a little bit like, okay, that's a little much. I don't know. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe I'm wrong. My gut is just like, what are we tranquilizing the dog for? I guess you want him to be safe, but like. Some locals embraced his passion. for freedom and free scrim

became a running hashtag. Fair enough. Okay, yeah, got it. Another time, Michelle was able to corner him with a literal, I didn't know they made these, thought it was in old cartoons, net gun. Oh my gosh. And it misfired, which gave Scrim the chance to run away a gun. This is why...

Well, he's quite terrified. Like, they're just shooting things at him and like blowing blowdarts at him and running down it with scooters, 15 mile per hour scooters. I mean, no wonder he's scared. At this point, I also thought the same. thing where I was like, I get that we're treating this like it's a cute little like, ah, he can't be, he can't be governed.

But it's like he was already, quote, the most scared dog you've ever seen. And now hordes of people are running after him. And like just constantly initiating his fight, flight, you know, like. And he's like, I know better than to go for that Popeyes, you know. Right, right, right. Like, I'm not stupid. I wasn't born yesterday. But like, yeah.

And I don't want, I don't mean to put blame on any of the people trying to rescue him as far as not like the regular citizens but like the the rest the shelter like I can understand like the desperation of trying to find this dog um but yeah it's just sad because you know he's so scared you know he's so scared but also like I think everybody's like the fact that he became this internet sensation people were it only probably made things worse for him imagine having social anxiety you know everyone's running at you like no we love you yeah so I think everyone was like no we're trying to like bring you presence and take you home and And also, if you think about it, like, when he was first on the lamb, in the early days,

like nobody knew about him. It's not like people were chasing him every time he walked down the road. Before fame. Right? Before fame. Now he's just got the PAPs. He's like a classic A-list. He's like, I can't even go to the grocery store anymore, you know?

He can't even be seen. Oh, my God. So this plus the videos of near sightings going viral. I mean, he's a full-blown internet sensation at this point. He cannot be caught until 177 days later. Oh my God. It was a wild goose chase for like half a year. Wow.

And eventually someone saw him in a fenced parking lot and he got himself in there in some way where he could knock it out. He had trapped himself. Poor baby. They text Michelle. She runs over. They were able to actually get him with a tranquilizer. But also this dog, it sounds like he, there was no other way to get him. Yeah, he's going through it right now.

Poor baby. They and, but even after they were able to like. tranquilism he still sprinted around for seven full minutes before even like falling asleep like he there was something about him which part of me is like oh my gosh he just like he's such a strong dog but part of me is also like his adrenaline must have been through the fucking groove right i think he was just so scared yeah um so finally back in the care of michel's rescue they were able to take him to a hospital to be assessed because i think that's one of the main reasons that they wanted to check on this dog No, that makes sense.

I get them wanting to take care of him, but also it's like, yeah, some animals are just meant to fly, you know? He's like, let me be. But so they took him to the hospital and thank God that they finally caught him because this is what the hospital found. Several abrasions across his entire body lost teeth, broken teeth. He had lost a toenail. He lost a chunk of his ear. Maybe he had not been neutered. I'm telling you.

Maybe that same guy from your town did that to him. he had 108 degree fever and he had two bullets in him. What? Air pellet bullets, to be fair. But he had still been shot and then they stayed in him and his like, the wound grew over it. Which I bet is probably what came from like the very first family or with his trailer park days because it had grown over so much by that point. So it could be an earlier injury. And it wouldn't explain why he was so scared.

He'd been fucking shot. Well, and especially if there's. shooting like blowdarts at him. He doesn't know it's a blow dart. Yeah. Another fucking gun, another air soft gun or whatever that is. Yeah. But he was in a rough state. But then in one article, someone said, if he wasn't already a legend, now he's an outlaw. Yeah, I mean, he's a bad boy for sure. Literally's been shot at and he's just... Outlaw is a best word for it. Yeah. So while Scrim rested up for his travels, from his travels, the whole town rejoiced that Scrim was found. Oh, he was safe. So excited.

Like ever, it was like, I don't know. And you know New Orleans loves a reason to party. Okay, people. Oh my God. They literally, like, you don't even like. Oh, let me dust these, uh, old carnival decorations off there. Only three days since we last used them. We need for another party here.

But just more beads and beads and beads. Bring them on. Drinking and, yeah. Oh, yeah. So news outlets reported on him being safe and even New Orleans City Council held a ceremony for him. Oh. where they invited him to like city hall and they gave him a full blown event where they gifted him doggy treats for his resilience. The council members were apparently starstruck by Scrim because they'd also been following along.

I get it. I would be too. One of them even said that this was like the best day of her life, like the best day on the council of her life. Oh my God. She's like, I always knew this job would be worth something. She's like, I just want to protect and serve. Ah, scream. And two, by the way, there was one article, I think it was, I don't, I don't want to say the wrong one, but there was one article where they interviewed the council members and the whole interview is just two different districts, or two different council members representing different districts, arguing with each other over which district Scrim is from, because they wanted him to be like the mascot of their district.

Oh my God. One of them said, Scrim's favorite district seems to be, uh, district B. So Scrim is now officially the mascot of district B. And then the next person said, I think we can establish that SRIM as a district A resident. And that's just really important to me. That's a quote. Whoa. I have all of a sudden am so into politics. You know what I'm saying? Yeah, you're like, oh, is this what it's like? Sure, I could get into that. I have been missing out. After all the hullabaloo, uh, oh, by the way, if you, I think I had a picture actually for you. Um, I was going to send to you. Yes, here is scrim at his city council ceremony.

He's at the podium and everything as if he's about to give a thank you speech. Oh my God, he has a beautiful haircut. He got his haircut. He noticed that GPS collar all of a sudden. Do you see that gigantic tracker on his collar? It's like a cute monster. It's literally like a big ass battery on his neck. They're like, you're going nowhere.

My God. Oh, sweetheart. Yeah, now I see that he's white. I couldn't even really tell in that first photo. like kind of darker to me. After like the six months of him on the lamb and he's a little dirty

and disheveled like an old Western cowboy. You know about all that. Yeah, like all scraggly. But this one he has like a fresh haircut. Oh, baby. So he, after all this, ended up going back home to rest up since he wasn't, you know,

he'd gone through a lot in the hospital wanted him to rest. He went back to the family that was considering adopting him, which like, wow, round two would be horrifying. Right. And they ended up needing to go out of town for a week. Michelle actually offered to take him in while they were gone.

So Michelle is watching him. And she actually reported saying that it was very cute watching Scrim get very comfortable with like the day to day life of being like a domestic dog. And she said like he would fall asleep like the classic dog thing where like he's totally spayed out with his stomach in the air and he's like snoring and wagging his tail. And he was bonding with her pets. And like he was very content. That was what she said.

He was very content there. and so one day she decides to leave and she's going to go get an errand i think she was actually getting a dog stroller for him um but when she came back the neighbor was screaming at her uh from the from the street saying the dog jumped off the roof oh my god and while gone uh she apparently he jumped off the 13 feet out of the second story building onto concrete somehow unharmed

and yeah he took off again and so if you would like I can send you the video of scrim jumping from the building what there's a video so basically she ended up

being like what the fuck happened and went and looked at her security cameras and true true as day He have got to be. He dove out of the second story window and directly onto concrete and somehow just took off. Where is this dog trying to go? Here's the video for you.

Holy shit, okay. I just pulled it up. Oh, my God. Sorry. He just like fucking slams down. Yeah, I would imagine that's four broken ankles right there. But he seems unfazed. Yeah, he does.

And then he just like fucking runs off. Yeah, just takes off. And so she posted it online to let everybody know what happened, setting off a second round of Scrim fame. Reports of Scrim's latest escape came out of the Washington Street Journal. Washington Street Journal? I'm not saying that, right? Washington.

Washington? Oh, it was. Okay. I was like, for some reason, the street sounded wrong. Washington Street Journal reported about him Washington Post Associated Press New York Times they all Got a Wall Street Journal

Wall Street Journal I knew I was saying it wrong Why do I feel like something's off I can't put my finger on it now It felt like a sneeze that wasn't gonna come out I kept thinking WSJ but I was like Wall Street Journal, thank you Okay so like big outlets are now reporting on him And all their headlines by the way

when I looked it up, not all of them. A lot of their headlines were like, scrim escaped dot, dot, dot, again. I don't think I remember that this happened again. I don't remember any. I think I saw the video of a dog jumping out of the window, but I thought that was like on Reddit and I went, oh, and I scrolled right past.

I don't think I was a part of this thing at all. No. So anyway, now he's gone. Huge headlines about this. The whole town is like, where the fuck did this dog go? Like we just spent six months like rallying together as a unit to find this goddamn dog. And they went, all right, let's do it again. Now the papers are calling him New Orleans most ungovernable dog.

And each citing from it's not just phones anymore. People are using their doorbell cameras because they're like if he ran from here, then maybe my camera has it, maybe my camera. So they're just like trying to track his entire trail. Map it out. And I mean, it's spiking so much interest at first. when he took off, Michelle was like, well, this isn't even a problem because I put that big

ass battery GPS tracker on him. So we're good now. It died within two hours. No. And immediately, the search was on. New York Times said, with each foiled capture or implausible escape, his fame grew and so did his reputation.

Wow. And once again, Scrim was spotted at several major landmarks. They're like, he's at Audubon Zoo. He's at the Superdome. He just wants to see the world. They should just had him at that little Bignet place. Cafe Dumont. Yeah, Café Dumont. That'd have been crazy. I'm sure he did a stop there.

You have to. If you're going to tour New Orleans like he's doing. So he was seen all over and a scrim hotline became available for tips. People were doing daily canvases of their neighborhoods and scrim spotings were regularly

now updated on this crowdsourced online map where it literally, you could see tags of everywhere he'd been. That is bananas. Knowing he was, was out there, people started leaving food, water, and blankets out on their porches or outside of their businesses with a note on it that said for Scrim. Aw. I think that was when people were like defeated.

They were like, whatever. Take the blanket and the food. We're not even going to try to catch it anymore. We're probably going to get a raccoon infestation anyway with all this food. Well, so Scrim was missing this time for three more months. Jeez. And this happened in November. And so he survived the.

entire very intense winter of neurons. I think that year there was a record-breaking blizzard, and he somehow, people still saw him, this little white dog in the snow, they still saw him all the time, and nobody could get him. Oh, my God. So February 11th rolls by, and Michelle gets a picture sent to her. That's today. Can you imagine, like, talk about... Synchronicity.

Totally on purpose. Totally, totally, totally, totally on purpose. I'm so good. I'm so good. I actually like I planned this recording for for this. And you even acted like you didn't, which was so impressive. I know. Oh, I really wanted you to like figure it out for yourself. Thank you. It took me in it long enough. It sure did. I just had to say the date. And then like two seconds in, you got it. So I figured it out. So basically February 11th, welcome to today. Happy anniversary to Scrim. Michelle got a picture sent to her of Scrim in a trap that a trap and rescue

group put together for feral cats. They put all this food together for cats. And I guess he was so hungry. He just tried to sneak in there. Baby. And they brought him back to the hospital and they were like, what the fuck has this dog probably done now? And apparently he was totally fine.

No broken ankles from that concrete jump. He had like some, like a tapeworm or parasite or something, but he ended up being fine. Jeez. And news outlets again had to report that scrim was captured. And I'm sure there was hesitancy in even putting that paper out. They were like, seriously. We're just going to write about this again.

They ended up figuring out through all the crowdsource online mappings that Scrim had probably, sometimes up to at 20 miles an hour, had traveled 60 square miles in his travels. Jesus. And when combing through everyone's sightings of him, by the end of his travels, because it had been pretty much an entire year at that point, Scrim survived the following while he was missing. He had endured summer temperatures in New Orleans that humid over 100 degree weather.

He had survived Hurricane Francine. He'd survived being shot at, apparently multiple times. He survived dodging cars on highways. There were sightings of him dodging trains. He survived jumping out of a second story building onto concrete. He survived Celebration Fireworks, which is terrifies most dogs. He survived the packed streets of New Orleans while they were hosting a Super Bowl. Wow.

he survived January's freezing winter, which involved a record-breaking blizzard, and then all the other wounds that came with him, his broken teeth and all this. Well, so he was finally captured, however now the real drama starts, because after all, they're bonding over Scrim,

Michelle and the interested adoptive parents are now having some custody agreements. Oh, no. Basically, the adoptive couple, Tammy, and I think her name's Freiba, Tammy and Freba they had been just as determined the entire time to find

Scrim. But, you know, they did everything by the book to adopt him. They just hadn't signed papers because they didn't have the time because he just immediately went missing.

But because Michelle got so attached to Scrim through all this backed out of the agreement last minute in a way where it was like certainly unprofessional. she announced the decision on Facebook saying that she'd had a change of heart because scrim had bonded with her pets and then she also said that the couple quote took it hard which duh and the couple's own statement Tammy wrote this is on also social

media as like a response I guess Tammy said no words devastated and really speechless over 10 months of my life dedicated to bringing him home to safety, even made it official and filled out an application and got approved only to be here and he's not my dog. Wow, that hurts. She also said, the most important thing is scrim's happiness and what's good for him. I want to see him thriving. I want to see him happy, but I lost my dog and I lost my friend. Wow, that's heartbreaking. And this was after Michelle even publicly stated how involved the couple was in trying to get scrim home. Michelle had said, Tammy was with me every step of the way during Scrib's time on the run. She spent countless sleepless nights driving around, moving traps, putting out feeding stations, assembling the SRIM recovery team, and doing everything she could to try and capture him safely.

Her dedication to him is unparalleled. She was not just a person who was interested in adopting Scrim. She helped save him. And then said, I'm taking the dog. Yeah, that's bad. That's really rough. So, for obvious reasons, Michelle was given a lot of hate on. online from people who'd been following Scrim story, which was everybody.

She apparently even got death threats from some people. And many people said that I'll, many people said that she decided to keep Scrim purely because of his fame. And she thought that he was a quote viral meal ticket for like, or like clout for her own rescue shelter basically. Like, oh, we're the rescue shelter that has Scrim. And we, so I think a lot of people thought it was a marketing move. And actually, we.

were in New Orleans on tour when this was going on because there was a bunch of scrim merch everywhere and I remember asking a storeperson like oh what what's who's the scrim character and she was like don't even get me started and she yeah yeah yeah she ended up telling me the whole thing and I guess it was in the thick of this like custody disagreement as I'll call it because she had pretty similar words for Michelle that like that the whole the whole town was apparently really not happy with her. because they all wanted Scrim to finally be with his family, especially since they had worked for over 10 months to get him home.

It sounded like a lot of people were not very happy with Michelle. But they allegedly did come to an agreement. I think because of the death threats, Tammy and Friba even decided like this was too much. And they reached out saying on Michelle's behalf to stop the hate. And I think they even made a video with Michelle and Scrim. Oh, wow. And they publicly stated that they had come to an agreement for like a visitation, basically, where, which I think is still a little messed up because basically Michelle ended up getting scrimmed and the couple could have visitation.

I'm like shouldn't. Yeah. Well, and I also feel like that's kind of a hard thing to consistently upkeep and or keep up and make sure that that's, it just feels like a recipe for disaster, like logistically and stuff. I think so too. Especially with the dog that keeps trying to escape. but it's like now you're bringing up to two different houses or well tammy said our focus is on scrim i hope everyone can celebrate with us that this dog is just doing wonderful and to this day scrim is still a

beloved icon in nola i wrote in my notes and some sources even call him a mythical creature which is very validating for why including this source including this source and this source also calls him an urban legend which is something i cover that's right uh he has had a statue made of him displayed at barkus do you know about Barkas? It's the, no. So New Orleans also has like basically a dog, Mardi Gras every year. Oh.

And so he had a statue at Barkas. That's cute. He was also literally a Mardi Gras parade float one year. That's awesome. Again, he was honored by the New Orleans City Council. And he was the mascot for many projects throughout the city. He inspired many local murals. He inspired a lot of flash tattoos in town.

Oh, I bet. And one article actually said that scrim is now like a phrase, like a slang word out there, which means, quote, hastily leaving without looking back. M, that's so good. He also has had a book written about him called Scrim on the run. Oh, look how cute that is. Local author, Scrim on the Run. And he's also had, so in New Orleans, there's the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame. Oh, I didn't know that.

Which I have been to. And they made a limited edition Bobblehead of Scrim. You have it too. Come on. Look at the Mardi Gras colors on the... Baby. Yeah, they only made

2024 of them. And I got one. Oh, wow. You would love the bobblehead. Actually, Leona would love the Boblehad Museum because they actually have like a map and you have to find all these certain ones. Find the one that has this in front.

I didn't even know that existed, honestly. You know me in my weird spots, but I sure do. But anyway, I became obsessed with him. So now I've got his book and his bobblehead. And that is scrim. Oh my gosh. Now I'm going to scrim to the bathroom real quick. Okay.

That is so cool. He's so cute and sweet. I didn't know the drama about him jumping out of the window. That's fucking nuts. I know. I know. I thought that was where it began, but apparently that was just the sequel. I mean, it feels.

really like some sort of movie like kids movie like he's getting load arts and like dodging trains and like jumping out of windows i mean it feels ridiculous but i mean the real children's movie of it all which is so sad is like if the end goal was like he was trying to find his like like a little girl who was so that's what i was worried about i'm like is there somewhere he's trying to get to you know what i mean like it i hope not because my heart can't take it no i can't take that no sorry i think he just loved the grass that's what i mean clearly he just loved being on the run you know He just likes spread his wings, okay? I get it, I get it.

All right, I'm also going to scrim to the potty. Okay, see you in a minute. There's nothing like coming home and seeing a package on the counter from Quince and going, what did I order for myself? I wonder, I don't even remember ordering anything. And then realizing it says Leona, Lambegnally on it. I was about to say there's nothing more exciting and then realizing it's Allison's package. I'm like, well, that's not what I wanted.

I was just about to say that. Devastated. Both of a shop at Quince. and... Yeah, and Elvis and Leona does too, apparently. I'm like, who's sending this? It was my mother-in-law, but anyway. You look so classy without having to pay that big old price tag on it.

Quince makes high-quality wardrobe staples using premium fabrics like 100% European linen, 100% silk, and organic cotton poplin. There's lightweight cotton cashmere sputters, which we've discussed before. I have a wonderful blazer from them. I love their linen collection. It's about to get really hot here. We're going through our little cold streak right now, and then it's going to get warm for the next nine months. loving the linen collection. Breezy.

I bet in that package it's sitting on the counter right now it says Allison's name on it, I bet there's linen in there. I bet. I bet you anything. I bet you big bucks. Right now,

go to quince.com slash drink for free shipping and 365 day returns. That's a full year to wear it and love it and you will. Now available in Canada too. Don't keep settling for clothes that don't last.

Go to Q-U-I-N-C-E-D-com slash drink for free shipping and 365-day returns. Quince.com slash drink. Like some people like to do things the hard way. And I'm like, why do you choose this burden for yourself? Life is hard enough. You know what I mean? Look, I've said it once I've said it a thousand times, I hate being inconvenience. I hate it. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's why we advise you,

please to switch to Mint Mobile. Yeah, with Mint Mobile, you can stop paying way too much for wireless just because that's how it's always been. Mint exists purely to fix that. It has the same cover, the same speed. It's just without the inflated price tag, which I don't know why anyone would turn that down. And for a limited time, you get 50% off 3-6 or 12-month plans of unlimited premium wireless. It has saved us so many times when we are on the road. We are so lucky for it. Christine keeps calling it MENTMobile. And I can't stop saying that in my head now. So hopefully it stays with you as well. Ready to stop paying more than you have to. New customers can make the switch today. And for a

limited time, get unlimited premium wireless for just $15 per month. Switch now at mintmobile.com slash ATWD. That's mintmobile.com slash ATWD. Up front payment of $45 for three months, $90 for six months, or $180 for 12 month plan required, $15 a month equivalent, taxes and fees extra, initial plan term only, over 50 gigabytes may slow down when network is busy, capable device required, availability, speed, and coverage varies. Additional terms apply. See mintmobile.com. All right, I have a pretty wild one today because it's one of those again that I have not heard of but saw like a headline about recently and it wasn't that recent. The original discovery of the crime was 2018. So I don't know how I missed all this, especially hosting a true crime show. Maybe I'm just more in the

no now. Sure. But yeah, this is the story of the Turpin family. And girl, we've covered this. No? I don't think so. Have we? Even I maybe not, but even I've heard. the name. Well, let's see, mate, okay. Hang on, I'm Googling. Oh, boy, imagine. Oh, no.

That's okay. I don't remember. Oh, no, Louise Turpin. Oh, shit. David and Louise Turpin. Bitch. Yep, that's them. Well, hey, you know what?

You said 2018 and it was episode 57. It was literally 2018. Okay, but can I tell you something else? So this is updated. This is going to be the updated version. The notes I have are based on information from 2022, and 2020 6. This is going to be fun.

You finally get, this is going to be with those episodes where you get to see like how your research has changed throughout the years. I knew these fuckers looked, looked familiar. And I was like,

I must have just skated on by this one. Like, how did I not? Wow. It was literally over 400 episodes ago. I think we could all use a refresh. I'm so glad you remembered that though. Never my life would I have ever been able to do that.

I don't know what just did that to my head. The Holy Spirit got you certain. Something psychic happened. us now. It was probably like me falling asleep like in that one episode and I like transported astral projected over here and just reminded you real quick. Can someone in the comments by the way, please tell me if you've listened to it recently. What is the episode where Christine fell asleep? Because I would love to listen to that again. Don't find it. It's so hard because no one. You'll never find it. We didn't record video back then. So like the only way anyone knows. God. I would have killed.

I would watch that every day. It would be my screensaver. You're just going, We barely record this film video these days with the way that I forget. No, I would love to be able to go back and listen to that. And the only way anyone would know it happened is like we cut to like an ad and then it goes, hello, it's the next day. It's the next day. Oh my God. I was so embarrassed.

Okay. So this is clearly a repeat. However, I'm really shocked actually now that I did cover this in 2018 because that was like fairly breaking. I mean, you know, not breaking, but like a lot of the information

had not come out yet. So I don't know what the hell I was talking about. No, I think you were like probably trying to do something that was topical. But like, wow. Good for me.

In your later years, though, I know that you like covering things where you have all the information. I do. I know a lot of people have asked, you know, why you haven't covered certain topics. And it sounds like it's often they're like ongoing cases. And you want to be able to just give all the information at once.

I'm so also glad you, said that because I've thought about that recently because I've been following the Nancy Guthrie case. By the way, have you seen any more on that since we talked about it? This is a dead honest answer. I haven't watched any of it because I know eventually I'll cover it. Oh, oh. Okay, that's really that's all I know is it's so, so sad. And I saw the camera footage. Okay, it's creepy. It's creepy. So yeah, they they took someone in for questioning, then they released somebody for questioning. So it's all very confusing. And then, of course, everyone's, like, analyzing the body language of the videos. The siblings have posted and the verbiage because it's similar to Silence of

the Lands, but also, like, Silence of the Lambs is based on the way the FBI, like, actually works. And so it's like, of course, there's probably similar verbiage used in both. Anyway, the whole thing is kind of like a minefield right now for... Sure. It just feels too too hot. It's like volatile. Yeah. And I'm like and I love to watch people cover that. I just don't know that I'm the one. I don't know that I'm like the one to be on top of it the way that a lot of these creators

are. I'm thinking of Annie Elise specifically because last night I was getting in bed and I saw she posted an update in her pajamas. And she was like there's just been an update in the case like my friend who's on the scene and I'm like, whoa. Like this is the kind of like content creator where I'm like damn like you. I'm like you are, you are serious, like you're putting in the work. Good for her.

No, I, uh, I don't know anything except that it bums me the fuck out. And I just can't imagine being in that position. And is she still like going to work and reporting the news while this is happening? I don't think so. Okay. She was supposed to go to the Olympics and then her entire, she and her entire team ended up staying back to like support her. Oh, that's nice. Yeah, which was sweet.

But yeah. Oh my God. Yeah, she's just kind of, they're going through it, man. But then she posted a video and it was she had like makeup on and for something for some reason that like struck me as odd. And I thought like is this somebody who's like obsessed with her or wants her like I don't know. Something just was weird about it because suddenly she's wearing makeup and she did a solo video. And I don't know if that's just because she's like kind of the main face of this family in the media or what. But it just struck me as really odd.

So I don't know what information they have. But I don't think they've been given proof of life. verifiably. And the weird thing is too, the ransom letters are going to the media, TMZ. It's like they absolutely want this clout. Yeah, but they're not sending, they're not communicating directly with the FBI or with the family. And the family and the FAA are like, talk to us. And it's like, no. No, they clearly, they want the attention. It's so gross. That's so sick. Yeah, it's really disturbing. So anyway, here I am, I guess, covering it now as it's happening. But I, I, you usually, Usually I'm not, you know, that kind of a reporter.

So this one, I guess I did do some sort of overview in 2018. I'm curious to actually go back and hear it. But now we have so much more information, thanks to good old Diane Sawyer, who did multiple interviews with the Turpin Children beginning in 2022. So that's where a lot of this information comes from. So this should be pretty much slightly similar and slightly totally brand new. Cool. Okay.

So just as a refresh on. January 14, 2018 at 5.49 a.m. in Paris, California, 9-1-1 dispatchers received a call from a girl claiming to have run away from home. They asked what street she was on and she didn't know because she'd, quote, never been out. She didn't even know what sidewalks were, so she was walking in the road. Didn't know what a sidewalk was? How old was she? Yeah. She was 17. Wow. So she was, okay. Okay. She'd actually never spoken to someone on the phone. before. She was shaking. Her voice was clearly extremely nervous. She explained to the dispatcher that she was from a family of 15 and that she and her siblings had, quote, abusing parents.

When asked for details, she explained that her two little sisters were at home chained up. Oh my God. And yeah, it sounded absolutely beside herself. They connected her with the sheriff's department who asked for her address. She actually had to pull out a piece of paper where she'd written the address because she didn't know the address. Oh. And at first she actually read the zip code by accident instead of the street address. And when asked, are you on any medications? Because they're thinking, is this someone who's gotten, like a teen who's gotten into something?

Sure. She said, I don't know what medication is. Oh. I know how I know. They popped up on my TikTok recently. Same with me. Okay. That's how I know this.

Okay. It's because last week, Diane Sawyer released her second special since the one in 2022 with three of the siblings that have now become adults and are now doing interviews. So there's been like quite a lot of build-ups. So that's probably why we both saw it on our feeds. That makes sense. Of course. Why did I think my first thought was, oh, I'm psychic and that's how I remember episode 57. Listen, I was really ready to believe it.

I still kind of do. Wow. Okay. So I still don't know this story. I just saw a video of the, I don't know what medication is or what's medication. Yes, what's medication? I don't know what medication is. And she did know what medicine, when they said medicine, she was like, sometimes I get

Robitussin, but, you know, really was clearly out of touch in many ways. So she finally got the address right. She was able to say it aloud. And they sent a deputy out to her location in a quiet suburban neighborhood in Paris, California. And that's P-E-R-R-I-S. Her name was Jordan Turpin, and she was 17 years old. In the middle of the night, she had climbed out of a first-story window with an old cell phone in an attempt to save her siblings. All the while, she was terrified that her parents would notice she was missing or look out a window and, like, maybe see her under a streetlight.

She said, quote, I know how they are. They wouldn't care if police were coming. They would just kill me right there. Oh, my God. Yeah, that's what she told Diane Sawyer in that 2020 interview I mentioned. She told the dispatcher, we live in filth. Sometimes I wake up and I can't breathe because of how dirty the house is. Dispatch asked, when was the last time you had a bath?

And Jordan said almost a year ago. So one other scary note, like just to put this all into context, is that the dispatcher knows that if this call drops or Jordan hangs up, there is no way to contact her again. She's using like one of these obsolete cell phones that don't have any service, but you are able to call 911. And I have always wondered if those work, you know, where it says like dial out to 911 is the only feature.

But it looks like it really did work. I could only make an outgoing call to 911. So if this call drops or if Jordan hangs up, they would have no idea where she is, how to get contact with her. Oh, my God. Okay. So they're trying to keep her on the line and they send a deputy out to, a deputy out to check on her.

When asked who her father is, she said David Turpin and said she didn't know much about her mother because, quote, she doesn't like us. Oh, my God. That's so sad. It is. She lists off her 12 siblings and their ages. Okay. Their ages range from two. Well, I'm just going to read them.

2.11, 12, 14, 16. She herself is 17. 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 25, 29. Even the 29 year old is like still there probably? All in the house. All in the house. A fucking 30 year old like what chained to walls and shit? Pretty much.

Oh my God. Like how do you even keep a 29 year old in a house for 29 years? Oh, you'll see. Yeah. It's not necessarily chains. It's more. I mean, that does happen. So that's why I said sort of.

It's like more mind games. A lot of psychological, right? Exactly. Abuse and that kind of thing. and like threats you know all that good stuff so 6.11 a.m. the deputy has arrived and this is where it's like much more jarring and real because you see the body cam footage. I'm going to send you a picture of Jordan just because throughout this story I just was really struck by how different over the years,

as she, like, she, like, healed as she, um, you know, escaped this. Uh, just how, how you can see her, you know, like, heal, uh, just by the way she, like, carries herself and stuff. And honestly, in this first, um, picture I'm sending you, hang on. It's just, it's hard to see, but it's her, it's her talking to the deputy who arrived.

And I also want to add that like she hadn't, she said she had never had a conversation with someone before. Oh my God. So she was basically like totally out of her element. They thought she was like young, you know, she was 17. She kind of behaved like she was much younger and like socially, you know, not aware. She never fucking talked to a person before. She didn't even know where her address was or the word medication. Oh my God.

Yeah. Oh my God. And you said something earlier that sounded. did you say like she had abusing parents or something? Yeah. It sounds like her English is and all that. She has quite a limited vocabulary and they, and she uses strange like, like,

not anymore, but she used like strange kind of lilted like syntax and stuff, which ends up for sure being part of just growing up in this environment. Sure. Yeah. No, I imagine like not speaking to anybody. You're going to almost create your own like dialect or something or your own, with your own siblings.

Yeah. Yeah. Okay. So it was now an hour and a half after she climbed out the window. The sun had come up and Jordan was safe in police custody. Deputies arrived at the house and they basically got them to open the door and they knocked for about, I think, four and a half minutes. And when the couple opened the door and we're like, what's going on? They said, we're coming in. And I need to send you this picture. It's like Okay. This is a picture of the body cam footage from the body cam footage of David and Louise Turpin

at the door. I know, I know. It looks like like caricatures of like bad people. Yes. Okay, good. I'm glad you say that because some of the photos that I'm going to show you on

like this looks like a bizarre is that her husband yeah he looks like a fucking dofess like he wait till you see the picture he literally has the dumb and dumber hair haircut okay it gets so much worse it gets so much how does you have a middle part and bangs on it's on the same fucking forehead and you know you know we talked about this in 2018 and i just begged to know what the fuck we said about this because his mugshot was definitely out by then i can't wait no his hair looks like buck teeth it's like the dumbest hair I've ever seen my life. Literally sending you the scariest mug shots you've ever seen. Hold on a second.

She's also, well, I'm not usually someone who's going to judge someone for their looks, but knowing who they are, I don't fucking care. He literally, I've never seen, like, it's like an, it's, like, he's like auditioning to be an idiot. That's what he looks like. He looks like he put a wig on to look stupid, but he just is. It looks like a dumb and dumber wig. Like, it really does.

Okay. And she's no prize either, by the way. She's scary. Like you, she's like smiling. And I want to put into perspective, like, at this point, while she was going through the arrest process, she's like, I put it later in my notes, but I'll say it now. She basically told people, well, don't worry, when I get them back, I'll never use chains on them again. Like, that's how delusional this woman was. I mean, you can see it in her eyes. She does, there's something about her eyes that are. Totally. I don't, you know. she's not all there. She's not well. She's not well.

And like you can see that clear, plain as day. The soul is gone or something. Yeah, feels empty. And like the fact that she's smiling at the camera and like saying things like, oh, I'll never use chains on them again,

I promise. And thinking like she's going to go home that afternoon. It's just all very sinister, you know? Yeah. I understand. I agree. I fully agree.

He's a, I'll never forget him. I mean, I apparently already did. but now I won't. First of all, you totally didn't because you totally pulled that out of nowhere. You totally remembered that episode somehow. And also, yeah, he's going to haunt us for sure.

If anyone has his haircut without ever having looked at you, I'm warning you now to please cut your hair. Because if I ever see you on the street, I'm going to be like, what is going on here? The thing is, when I saw the haircut, in some of the pictures, I thought. gas Bob. It's like, Dora the Explorer. And I thought it was a wig. Bominos, the barbershop. And then like later on, literally at trial, he has this, or not a trial, like in the courtroom,

he has the same hair, but it's gray now. And I'm like, that wasn't a wig. Like, that was his real hair. And he still styles it that same way. I, you know, if I, if someone dared me to say something nice about him, I'd be like, I can't, I'm so impressed you have all your hair. But you really need it to be gone now. Like, good for you. Like, show it off, I guess. But that's what it is, right? Like, I don't know what else.

Why else you would do this? It's such a strange way to do your hair. Like, it's not even like it's easy to keep upkeep, you know? Like, that, like, that's all, like, what are you doing? He looks like he's, he put on, like, his, he put on a wig to impersonate his, like, like, like a woman. Like, he looks like a Karen. It looks like a wig.

Yes. Yes. totally it looks like blonde lady wig or she deserves the same amount of hatred he's just this his is easy though that's just an easy low blow he just really he just really made a decision and stuck to it is what i'll say you know i hope nothing i said was cancelable however he deserves it i think listen i don't think any of us are going to be uh rooting for this guy so okay oh all right so they get to the house they knock on the door they're like it's the police and they're like what's going on and they tell the family oh there is a girl that was i don't know how they phrased it it's

like a very careful way that they spoke to not let the parents know which child it was oh that's like thank god i know it was like really tactful um and they said you know a girl said she's from here and she's like from where from this house and they were like maybe and she's like which girl and they're like we don't know her name and she's in the police car meanwhile over here like full name everything she had to be sweating fucking bullets she was terrified I can't imagine and one of the uh the deputies who was with her was like you don't have to look you don't have to even think about it like look away um because she was just scared that like they would drag her back in and she's like I know they would kill me they would kill me um whether the police were looking or not that didn't

matter. And that's how she was really life or death. Wow. Let's talk about his hair again. The fuck ass bob. I know, right? All of a sudden, I feel really justified in everything I said. What a piece of shit. And by the way, it is important in that picture to notice where that fuck ass bob is standing because it's blocking a particular angle that was hiding two more, it wasn't hiding, but it was covering two more bedrooms, like concealing two more bedrooms where they found the rest of the children. Because remember, there are so many here. 13 of them. So as all this is going on, by the way, police walk in and you can hear this fucking guy.

You can hear David say, do you have a warrant? And they go, oh, we don't actually need one. Thanks or something like that. Like, it's like this very off-phinged. Doofist McDumass. Really? It's so dismissive. It's like, oh, actually, we don't need one.

Thanks for checking. You know, like it's so dismissive and like well said. Because children are, they have reason. to believe children are in danger on this property, they can walk right in, you know? Yeah. And so they're like, we don't actually need that. Like, thanks for your concern. Well, it sounds like they, I mean, it sounds like they don't know what a warrant is, right?

Like, I mean, it doesn't sound like something that occurs to them. To the... Like, he's the one who said this, the guy with the Bob, he said, no, we don't need a warrant? Oh, no, no, no. Sorry, he told the police, do you have a warrant? You can hear him like... This whole time, imagine it my way, though, because it sounded like the cops were saying, like, we have a warrant and the guy going, we don't need that, thanks.

And just like, oh, oh, that's way better. No, I wish that's how it went. Sorry, I'm so primed to just hate this man. Okay. No, he is still equally stupid. And he's like, do you have a warrant? And he's like, trying to stand up for himself somehow. And they're like, actually, we don't have that or need it.

Thanks. Like, thanks for checking on me, bud. You know, like just dismissed. And they're like, well, we're like, well, we're. packing so it's really cramped in here right now and i got to say that is an understatement um i want to add that as all this is happening by the way jordan's older sister who's the eldest the 29 year old jennifer she knew about jordan's escape plan so she was basically like hearing a commotion and she didn't know like if the police were bringing her sister home if like they had gotten help finally you know

she didn't know what the outcome was so she's terrified as well she's waiting in her bedroom she hears knocking on the door, they say it's the police. And finally, this family, these kids, realize that they're actually being taken out of this house. Which has to be also on its own scary because they've never been outside. Like even if they know they're being saved. Oh, terrible. Terrifying. And maybe not because I'm sure they've been told the police are bad or something.

No, they just didn't even really understand. They didn't even really have an understanding of like, yeah, the outside world. And yeah, I don't know. I don't know the right way to put it because there was. also a lot of trouble they faced because they weren't familiar with the outside world got taken advantage of, you know, troubles in foster care, that kind of thing, because they were not properly prepared for the real world, you know? Yeah. So there were, yeah, yeah, there were both sides. So inside the house deputies were horrified to discover that things were basically exactly

as Jordan had described, but worse. They find 13, well, now 12, amazing. children, some of whom are chained to their bunk beds. And by the way, like, in the body cam footage, you can see that the mom, like, had thrown, they're looking for the chains because she had taken them off. It took them, like, five minutes to open the door. And it's because she was undoing the chains and hiding them. But she didn't get to one of the kids. So one of the kids, the chains were still on, and they couldn't find the keys.

And this poor boy was, like, in chains this entire time. Police are looking everywhere for the key. They can't figure out how to get this poor kid out of this bed. I mean, it's just all very harrowing and, like, upsetting to watch just to give you a warning. But the house itself, too, is just absolutely filthy. I'm going to send you. I mean, how could it not be, right? You have, like, 13 people trapped inside.

Okay, so I'm going to show you some pictures. This is, like, where... And they were all sleeping in bunk beds, but, you know, this is, like, a, I think, like, a two-bedroom house. or maybe three bedroom house. And then just to add, there were recently released pictures of the house where the family lived in Texas, which these are not current pictures.

The person who bought the house most recently posted the, or took pictures of the inside, but this is what their house looked like when they lived in Texas. And it just gives you an idea. Oh my God. Just filth, like filthy.

It's really, really upsetting. It looks like bodily functions were just spread everywhere. There was feces on the walls. It's just, I mean, you have a two-year-old living there, like, under the care of a bunch of other children. It's just... So not justifying at all what they've done. This seems like a true mental health crisis as well. And they...

Yes. Okay. I believe on her part especially. I don't quite know what's going on with the fucking guy. But she is struggling psychologically, yes. or was at least at the time for sure. I mean, if anyone else could see these pictures right now, it's, I mean, it's just fecal matter beyond compare.

There's, there's, there's a lot of troubling stuff. And of course, it doesn't excuse it, like you said. It just explains, like, it gives context to, like, the specific abuse they endured and, like, where that came from. So they arrest these two with those creepy mugshots. And, like I said, she's just planning on. on when she's going to get out, please. It's like that other guy from last week,

he's like, when I get out of here, I'm going to sue every one of you. And it's like, dude, you killed your whole family. You're not coming out. Like, you're not leaving. Get used to it. These people are so delusional. Okay.

So the kids are taken to the hospital, and nurses and doctors, multiple cried upon treating them because they were just so malnourished, so socially stunted. Some of them were so amazing. They had trouble walking. One of them had heart damage because of the malnutrition.

One of the preteen-aged girls had an upper arm circumference the size of a four-month-old babies. Oh, my God. This is how tiny they were. And it was just really horrific to see all this. And then as somebody kind of astutely put, like, not just one child, but 13 of them. You know, it's just really shocking. And on top of that, they'd clearly been in isolation their whole lives. they really had a lack of vocabulary of socialization of an understanding of the outside world.

And Jennifer, the eldest, said that her first moment of freedom was dancing to music in the hospital. And that's sort of when she realized, like, I have my own life now. She says they went to a park and Jordan, the other sister, was ecstatic to smell fresh air and remember thinking, how could heaven be better than this? Oh, my God. they really they really had no understanding of the outside world I want to add to that

in the Diane Swear in the newest one that came out as we record this like last week she said they're still so filled with gratitude they still like admire the sky they still love to sit in the grass like they're still just very

content and like I mean especially the 30 year old like you've never known anything else right and like finding beauty and things that most people just ignore or take for granted. So let's get into how this even happened, right? Because like, of course, we're wondering about mental health and all that. So this all begins. And then a small town in West Virginia, there's a shy, nerdy guy named David Turpin. He graduated from Virginia Tech, got a job at Lockheed

Martin in engineering. And then there was Louise Robinette. She in high school was in the Bible Club, in the choir. She was six years younger than him. When they got married, she was 16. And he was 22. But Louise's sister recently told people magazine that he'd started making passes at her when she was as young as 10 years old. So this girl was basically groomed by this man. Well, he was 16. She was 10. At this point, they already knew each other. And it's been described as she was being taken out of what we'll discuss later as a very abusive, sexually abusive household into another abusive household is what her siblings describe. But, you know, she left her home to be with David.

And when she was 16 and he was 22, they were married. They'd grown up Pentecostal. And with that kind of rigidity, they really had this, like, strict understanding of faith and adherence to faith. They got married and moved to, oh, Fort Worth, Texas. Hey, maybe I just subconsciously. Jeez. And my February 11th, we're very, uh, that's weird. Today. Yeah, it's weird.

So they moved to Fort with Texas where he worked at Lockheed Martin. And this is where things start to really fall apart because they tell family that God wanted them and you know about this to have as many kids as possible, which I think is quiverful, right? Mm-hmm. Yeah, okay. So they tell their family this and their family's like, what? But their family, remember, is, A, abusive and B, like across the country. and you know you're in like the 90s it's just not you're they're not keeping track and so they don't even realize like how bad things get i do have a picture i'm going to send you of the family like young because

they do look relatively like the duggers oh do they really they look weirdly like the dougar and didn't you are all their kids names starting with jay yes what the fuck is going on here this is like i don't know i didn't even put that together until now. Okay. Well, that's just aside from everything else, but they literally look like pictures I've seen of the Duggers when they were younger. So, yeah, I send this because I'm thinking this is the most normal picture I have of them. But the fact that it makes you think of the Duggers makes me so happy, because there really is not a normal picture of these two. They're just like monsters. I mean, you've only shown me two pictures, but in both of them, she also just still has dead eyes. It's like vacant. Yeah. It's sad because just the way she treats her.

own children. And it's like God wants me to have all these children to lock up in their bedroom. I mean, it's so strange and like, I would love, not to understand because I couldn't, but I would love to hear their understanding. Maybe you're going to tell me of like why God wanted them to have so many kids to torture. There's no rhyme or reason as far as I can tell. I just didn't know if they even had their own like absolutely deranged opinion of it. No, they just basically said God wants them to have these kids and I think then over time things just evolved. Geez. I feel like they were like, God wants us to have kids and then the Bible actually didn't say anything

else. So like now what do we do with them? And they're like, wait, now what? Yeah, it's so strange because it doesn't really track like that. That was the motivation, you know, but that's kind of all we've got. So Jennifer, the oldest girl who was 29 at the time of escaping this place, she was born when her parents were 26 and 20. and she really struggled.

She actually was the only child of the Turpin family to go to school, to go to any sort of schooling ever. She remembered it being extremely traumatic, kids calling her skinny bones. She looks back and she thinks, like, she said, I know I smelled, you know, these kids didn't, I couldn't understand why kids didn't want to play with me. And after third grade, her parents pulled her out of school and no more Turpin children would ever go to school. So they moved to Paris, California, which was a small town, 70 miles outside of LA.

They grow even more distant from family. At this point, they have 13 kids. Their family back home doesn't even really realize how bad things have gotten. They've fallen out of touch. They put the kids in a trailer behind the house and then they just left them there to fend for themselves. They would go off and live in their own apartment.

And once a week, they would drop off very limited groceries. And this was when Jordan was six years. old, so the younger sister, the one who escaped. She remembers eating ketchup, mustard, ice cubes, leaves, grass just to try and survive out there while her parents were off like gallivanting and like having date nights and living in their own apartment. The oldest Jennifer was forced to discipline the children. Her dad had these homemade cages he built that she was forced to either put her siblings in or then be punished much worse when they came home. So it was essentially like a lose-lose situation.

Yeah. Deeply traumatic. I can't imagine even her guilt in hindsight of like, I mean, I know, I'm actually in hindsight, she's probably like, I didn't have a choice. I, we were just surviving. But the guilt of like not wanting to put your kids, your siblings of fucking pages. And like, now you have to. And that impossible task of like being the oldest, wanting to protect them, being forced into.

Yeah, it's really sick because like that's part of the game, right? Like making them responsible for one another. I mean, it's just really dark. So they leave them there to survive, to attempt to survive. Meanwhile, David and Louise move into a motel. They begin going out to bars, drinking, having the time of their lives. His license plate is literally DL forever, which is David and Louise forever. It's so weird.

I'm going to send you a picture of them together. Like now they're becoming more and more just like unhinged looking as well. Oh, becoming. Okay. Becoming. They're there, babe. I don't know what just... They are here.

Oh, my God. They're... And by the way, the picture that Christine just showed me is them at fucking Disney. And like, so they can clearly afford to, like, not make their kids eat leaves and mustard. Correct. Correct. And, like, his shirt says happiest memories on earth. Like, really.

Gross. It's so gross. He reminds me as someone, but it's probably like fucking penny wise. I don't know what it is. I hate this man. Tim Curry. Okay, you're going to freak out about the next one. You're going to freak out because I'm going to have to punish you with something.

I'm so sorry about it. I couldn't not. Every time he scored past, I got upset, but I have to put it in here. So just as an example of the shit they were pulling, the stunts they were pulling, they actually brought the kids with them to some of these outings. Shut up. Yes, there's a group photo of them all at Disney and matching outfits. They brought the kids to Las Vegas to get their vows renewed.

And then they have the kids file in in matching dresses and like little suits to dance with the Elvis impersonator. And it's like on video, like home video. Ew. And the kids are like skin and bones and like are just happy to be outside. Like it's just really dark. But here's a picture from their vow renewal in Vegas. The hair.

The hair is really challenging for it. It's like carpet that hasn't been like tufted yet. Like it's like it's just a big strand of like. It's like curtains. It's like if your hair was one hair. It's literally a Lego head. Like it's just like, yuck. It just keeps getting worse.

And like her hair keeps getting cooler. Like she has a silver streak. But like she can't possibly look at him and think that's my. man like she can't she can't possibly he's she simply doesn't have eyes if she okay sorry this is the one where I went that's a wig it has to be there's no way honestly honestly I would believe that given how gross and narcissistic they are he's bald as shit and he is like I actually have to put this on so I feel good about myself could really be a wig I don't know but it sure looks like one I tell you what it

It's flopsie-mopsie cotton tail over here. Like it's just. But put it in a tux, you know? And it's like what's happening. Like if you're paying for a wig, buy a good one. Like that's, anyway. And she, again, no prize to her. She's just easy.

She seems to be into it. And maybe it's just her thing. Here's a picture of the whole family. Of course, children's face is blurred out. But we've got, um, oh my God. Hey, guess what this? I literally can't imagine anything more dougarific than this.

I mean really. Stogorific indeed because imagine in the background you hear like, you're the devil in disguise. And it's like, what is going on with these fucking people? Like, ain't nothing about a house. And they're like dancing. It's so uncomfortable because they're all off the beat. And like it's just really cringe.

And like look how little the one on the right is holding a little baby, like the two year old. This two year old lives in the house with them. And like look how skinny they are. You know, these are like teenage. age kids or a preteen it's just really yeah and this is when the parents like wanted to put them on display right so which like i can't imagine being them and being like so terrified of like like they're in such if they never get to leave the house and they're all of a sudden here like i know that they're

petrified of like if i make any wrong move the second we get to the hotel room i am so fucked like 100% and because and that's what they're not going to tell anybody not going to tell any like there people right there. You couldn't tell Elvis. Like, help me. No, and there were a lot of reasons. So I showed you that last picture of them in the dresses because in the 2020 interview, Jordan explained, like, then they brought us home to wear our filthy pajamas. Like, after this. And like, here's just a picture. I just, it's, it's hard to look at, but it's some of the clothes that they took out of the bedrooms, like just

so. Like beyond soiled. Like soiled. Like soiled. Yeah, really foul. And so they were like, it was just all this creepy show, you know, where they would be taken out. Oh, God. And like, I can't imagine even, I wonder what that did for them psychologically about, like, being given a gift when it's like, I'm sure it's not this way anymore or maybe it was never this way. But I would start associating like getting a gift with like, oh, this is something we put on display publicly. But then as soon as we get home, throw it away, it was never yours. Yeah. Well, you know, it's interesting you say that because Louise actually suffered from what appears to me to,

not an expert, not a doctor, to be a hoarding disorder. She had this, like, manic shopping addiction, and it was all to children's toys, games, and clothes. And she would hoard them in the house, but not let the children touch them or get in. Evil. Yeah. Evil. And also, by the way, in that picture where all of them are at, like, that vulnerable,

I just want to say it again for people, dead eyes. Yeah. Just, there's something so soulless about her. And he looks like just like Justin Bieber, what we all thought he was going to look like one day. Yeah, like the Photoshop versions of him is an old man. Yeah, it's so weird. Horrifying. It's horrifying.

And they weren't even allowed. They were putting these dirty clothes back on. And they were brand new with tags in the closets, like brand new kids clothes, nice ones. There were toys still in the shrink wrap. Like, for example, they had about 100 different collector versions of monopoly, but the kids were not allowed to touch them. It was bad. at one point David Turpin files for bankruptcy but are David and Louise going to take a hit?

Of course not. Their children can take a hit for them, right? 100%. They start eating bread and peanut butter almost every day when they can get it. The parents are, of course, eating like fast food and whatever they want, but the kids have to just kind of get by on sandwich bread. They even made Jennifer often prepare their meals for them, like their frozen dinners and stuff, but she wasn't allowed to.

to have any herself. I can't imagine like smelling actual food and then just eating nothing or leaves or some shit. And just like moldy bread. So this Diane Soyea review, I mentioned it's so good. It's really well done. I have a picture of that from that interview

just of how like happy and healthy they look. Like I just, they're like glowing the two sisters. That's Jennifer, the eldest on the left. And that's Jordan who escaped. Oh my God. Look at that. I know.

Aren't they sweet? Oh, they're so cute. They're so sweet. Like, they really are. And now three more siblings have kind of come forward into the spotlight a bit to tell their story. And they all just look like they're just like glowing. Like they're all just so beautiful people. I don't know. They're just full. Yeah. They're very strong people too. You know, they just there's something about them. They're just very self-assured. Good for them. Yeah. Yeah. So they do such a great job like recounting this nightmare. And, I mean, even Jennifer being the oldest and saying, like, I remember when it was just me, you know, like being the youngest, you know, think about that and like going to school and then. Also, like, imagine finding out that your parents, that your mom's pregnant again and knowing that like another kid's going to come just to like have to deal with this. Like imagine how sad you would be. And it's like your and it's probably on you, you know, the responsibility of caring for the kid. Yeah, it's, it's horrific. And they of course were not in school, but they were registered as. Sandcastle Day School with teacher Louise Turpin, principal of the school David Turpin. But in reality, they were just leaving the kids alone in the house. And the parents went out and did their own thing.

The kids would sneak out, like to talk to one another outside of their bedrooms. Of course, unless they were chained up, which was also a regular occurrence. They would sneak bits of fresh air out of cracked windows just to kind of get some air. They began teaching each other what they knew. so like Jordan learned the alphabet from her sisters, you know, because they weren't in school. And they were just kind of left in this house of horrors while their parents went out. And they had, you know, basic, like, they had a TV with, like, channels on it. They had one or two of the older kids had, like, a basic smartphone.

And so sometimes they could, like, you know, look things up or Google things. But for the most part, they were really kept under lock and key. And, you know, people have wondered, like, well, yeah, why didn't they just say something or why didn't they talk to somebody or get help? And it was always the threat of either nobody wants you. This is the only place that anybody would ever want you. You know, just like that verbal abuse of like you're just worthless trash and like you're lucky you even have this house. You know. So verbal abuse in that sense. Also the responsibility and like the connection with your siblings, you know, like you don't want to risk. Oh, did my camera just go off? Yep. Goodbye. What happened? I don't know. Sorry, folks. My camera died and then I forgot what I was saying. The reason we know a lot of this, I will add to, is that Jordan had a Barbie doll that she had been allowed to play with. And it had a little pink button on the belt, which controlled, as Jordan discovered, a toy camera, but like an actual camera inside the doll. So she would kind of wander around sometimes and make little movies just for fun and film stuff in the house. So we, like, can see some of that footage online, which is just crazy.

And her parents knew there was a camera in this thing? No, they had no idea, which is why it was like such a damning piece of evidence because, you know, you see David Turpin and his fuck-ass Bob like waving, like going off to Lockheed Martin to go to work and waving goodbye. And it's like your son is chained up in that room. What are you doing? You know, like you just see the filthy carpets and the fact that the kids had to like, by the way, they had to wait till dark because they were on this like weird schedule where

during the day they slept. and at night they were allowed to wake up and kind of roam around freely. Yeah. Like caged animals, but, like, they had to keep all the blinds closed and they had to duck. They weren't allowed to stand up. They, you know, they were kind of restricted in that sense, but they got enough freedom that they were able to, like, bond very closely with each other and stick up for each other. And it was because of her little siblings being chained up and hearing, she said she couldn't

hear them cry another night. She was like, I can't hear them cry another night. So even though it's life or death, like, I have to get out of here. And, yeah, it was just really remarkable. When they are instructed or when they are taken somewhere like Disney or whatever, they're instructed never to speak to strangers. So that's kind of part. There was a lot of stranger danger kind of put in their minds like you were saying earlier,

like not to trust people, that kind of thing. Nobody else wants you. Nobody would ever help you. So Jordan actually said that the threat they would get from her, the parents was that if they ever talked out or ever like got the parents in trouble that something called CPS child protective services would come and separate all the kids. And Jordan basically believed that they'd end up in different countries and never see each other again. So like the fear, I mean, that was like her worst fear because it's like the only people you know,

your siblings and you're so close with them. And the threat of like, if you talk, everybody's going away like you're never going to see them again just it really was effective so they played on the ground and the filthy rugs unless they were chained up and always at night and of course this is so weird m this is actually where justin beber comes into the story what i'm so serious right now are you just calling about that i'm not i'm not i hadn't even put that together until you said it but um discovered so Jordan had kind of snuck one of her siblings smartphones unbeknownst to her parents and she discovered Justin Bieber's music videos. She became obsessed like she's such a girly girl

even now in her like Instagram it's all very like glam and like you know girly she became obsessed with his music videos according as Diane Sawyer said in the in the kind of promo she said never underestimate the power and reach of a teenage heart throb. Yeah, sure. Has Justin Bieber commented, by the way? Because I don't think so. They're owed some merch. They're owed a video. I know. They're owed like a cameo or something, right? So Jordan was like totally fascinated by this outside world.

And she began to realize there was like a whole world out there for girls like her. She watched all of his interviews and learned vocabulary and communication through Justin Bieber's interviews. And I know the more she watched, the more she realized she wanted to be a part of the outside world. she loved high school musical and would watch that and would just imagine like the chance to be in a dance, you know, a dress, dancing with friends. Like it was just such a foreign concept. And here's a photo of, so they had side by side the high school musical scene, but then a picture of her after she made a dress out of discarded paper at the house. Trying to like look pretty.

It's heartbreaking and she looks so adorable. but she made herself a dress out of paper. Which like, go off, girl? Seriously. It's so sad, but it's so sweet at the same time. And you can tell she looks so pretty. She feels so pretty. She feels very beautiful.

And like it just really broke my heart. So she used this smartphone and was watching all these Justin Bieber videos. And when her parents would leave, she'd make singing videos in the bathroom and post them, like to TikTok or what have you. And one day she got a comment asking why she's always inside. and always at night. And she was like, oh, I'm not allowed to eat or get out of bed. Jackpot. Yeah, yeah.

And he's like, you need to call the police. And she was like, I knew it. I knew something was wrong at my house. Like she really was just, it was finally hitting her like, oh, this is not. Question. Question. Before we move on, because this feels like the end of chapter one and into chapter two. did the parents not wonder why she knew songs?

So she didn't know, she didn't sing any of this in front of them. It was only ever when they left. And the siblings kind of knew that they'd passed her on the phone and stuff, but the parents did not know that the kids were looking at these kind of things. Yes, yeah. And how did we get the phone again? Like, what was the reason for her? Two of the older siblings had access to a smartphone,

and somehow Jordan got her hands on it. And I think it was like so that the parents could, call them or attract them or like it was something very. That feels so risky for people who are holding 13 people hostage for 30 years. But I think they get to the point where they're so comfortable. They're like, eh. Sure. You know what I mean?

Like she's almost 30 and it's like, well, she's clearly. We can trust that she's not going to do anything. Yeah, kind of. And it's like, honestly, we don't know if anything would have happened if Jordan hadn't gotten this idea in her head to escape, right? I mean, like, they could have kept them there long. longer. So this is horrid because pretty quickly, she didn't get caught singing songs, but she did get caught watching a music video or Justin Bieber music video.

Oh, no. Oh, no, no, no, no. Yes. And her mother choked her in her bed until she was unconscious. she began to have serious nightmares about her mother killing her. And one day, mother, as they called her, mother and father, by the way, one day mother says they're moving to Oklahoma, start packing up. And Jordan was like, it's now or never. I got to fucking get out of here. And one detective on the case, I believe he was either a detective or a doctor, but he's very familiar with the case.

And he said, I don't think all those kids would have survived the trek to Oklahoma. When we found them, they could barely walk. And, like, they're trying to shuttle these kids to Oklahoma, who knows how and under what conditions. Like, it just, the timing was now or never. She told two of her sisters, including Jennifer, I'm going to leave. And they help her plan. So she draws a basic map. Jennifer does.

She doesn't quite know where everything is outside, but she tries to explain, like, the layout of the street in the neighborhood. They make sure to get pictures of the abuse to show proof. they call a taxi to get a quote and Jordan had seen the show cops and when the taxi cost way too much money like they didn't have hundreds of dollars for a taxi to come pick them up Jordan was like I've seen people call 911 on cops and that's where she had learned that and so she took this like dilapidated old phone this like defunct phone and you know hit it and the day before the move she said I got to go. So she hid pillows under her blankets, climbed out onto the window sill and hopped out. Sounds like fucking scrim. He's hopping out of these windows. My God. Got a blast. Yeah. Seriously. Wow. So she hops out the window and it's like really chilling. You see the doorbell footage from across the street. You can see like a kid hopping out and just like looking around and then just running. and that's when she made this call that we started with earlier in the episode.

Did the neighbors know what was going on? So some of the kids have expressed frustration that the neighbors knew something was wrong and had to have known something was wrong but didn't say anything. Same with the school system, the fact that like nobody clocked that this daycare was a real thing. It was a fake thing and like they were never checked up on, you know. And it's hard because, like, most abuse allegations are made through schools, or not allegations. Most, like, inquiries are made because schools are mandatory reporters. And so, like, they're not in any schools.

And so there just was nobody to advocate for them. And it is wild, though, because I would imagine, like, the neighbors, you live across the street from a house of 15 and you only ever see two. I don't even know if you would know, though. Yeah, maybe they didn't even know there were kids that live there. if they knew how many at least. But also the blinds are always drawn. Like I'm sure you'd think like something's bad. But I don't know that you'd ever even have any clue.

Sure. Yeah. But I don't know, man, I guess. Oof, gives me the shivers. Yeah. So she made that call and we've kind of covered how the arrest happened, all that. So these two were charged with 12 counts of torture, seven counts of abuse of a dependent, adult, six counts, child abuse, 12 counts, false and

imprisonment. Louise's defense took the angle that she'd been diagnosed with histrionic personality disorder and like they even use her saying you know when I get back I promise I won't chain them up again as like evidence that she clearly didn't understand the gravity of the situation. She's clearly not with reality. She's clearly out of touch. They even have her sister's way in and according to them Louise may have ended up where she did because of a very very dark family secret which I think we can all see just these horrible patterns reappearing again. Ongoing sexual abuse from a very close friend or family member.

We don't know. But they described him as very, very close and somebody that they were meant to trust. And that's kind of where that conversation about her leaving one abusive household into another has come up with the siblings. I do have a picture of them at trial because like now his hair's gray, but it's the exact fucking same, Bob. What is with this guy?

I can't even look at it. Please don't make me do this. It's going to send you any more pictures of him. And you know what? I have to give, actually, I have to back up a little bit and give a little grace on that haircut because that was the era of Justin Bieber and Zach Efron High School musical. Maybe that was in vogue. Yeah, but I think like a six-year-old man who's like kidnapping children, you know, maybe like read the room.

Don't fucking, you're not a hip teen. You're not 16. You're not even a good dad. No, no, no. You're not a good person. Nothing about you is good. Shave your head. Shave your head.

Cut it out. Give it on. So, David refused to talk to investigators, basically the entire time. They both pled guilty. And perhaps the only thing sadder, which, like, I hate to say this, and I'm sure this was not something I was able to cover in 2018. The only thing sadder, I think, than all of the above is that, like, they were pretty much, a lot of them at least were failed by the foster care system after their rescue. Which, like, is just such a hard thing to hear. after like such a daring escape and like finally being rescued and a lot of things have slipped

through the cracks. I mean, these kids had never been taught what a sidewalk was, let alone like how to handle a debit card. And it's like, you know, of course people took advantage. There was a sexual assault allegation of one of the foster fathers. And one of the daughters, the younger Turpin girl said like, oh, well, people can tell when you're vulnerable and have issues and are looking for a father. father figure. And she's like, I didn't know that that was like, you know. And if there were signs,

you wouldn't have even known about that. You have never heard about it. Right. Like, after all the abuse, you just went through a baby. Like, you're at least I'm not chained to a bed now. So like, I mean, it's like comparing, it's replacing traumas with other traumas and not knowing how to react. Yeah, they were often passed around. There were comments too on that note that like, I, I know why now I know why your parents did this to you. They got a lot of, like, verbal. I, know like a lot of verbal abuse from foster families um there was talk of like oh look what your parents did do you know you know nobody wants you to like it's just really dark stuff and like even in that in 2020 updated episode they they said the answer was like I just want to make it clear too like of

course they're wonderful foster families and it's such an important job but just to hear like when things go wrong and aren't and people aren't advocated for by like the people that are in the system that are supposed to take care of them it's just really hard to hear um they were placed in dangerous environments um one of the daughters was assaulted they they were oftentimes um couch surfing as in didn't have a place to live uh i mean the youngest was two right like think about this like that's just so hard um one investigator said like they had no six sense about the world about who was safe who wasn't safe they were just kind of dumped out in the world and so what happened and like the other thing is like they raised a lot of money through the public but like the kids were not really

given access to it so it's like they don't really know whatever happened to it and then this one woman Vanessa who was meant to be helping the kids transition into the real world she like didn't help she would like when they'd ask for help with like the bus system she'd be like Google it like she would just seem like she got fired at she actually got fired at she actually got fired Good. One of them needed help with getting dental benefits. And she was a whole, I mean, talk about man, wow, talk about neglectful. She allegedly, you know, didn't help them access dental benefits and just really was hands off. Yeah, yeah, really, really rough. And they did begin official inquiries in 2022 and reached a settlement with the Turpin siblings. But as part of

that settlement. The department said that they did not admit any wrongdoing whatever, you know, foster system that was. But as far as I can tell now in 2026 from the updates, it appears that most of them, if not all of them, are thriving. Okay, they're all extremely close, like all 13 of them. Here's a picture of Jennifer's Gothic wedding. Shut up. I know. It's just so sweet. And like, they just look so happy. And then this is Jordan who now does. I mean, she is successful.

She has, uh, she's so sweet and beautiful. She has an Instagram with 359,000 followers. Um, and on her bio, it says she- Not one of them is Justin Bieber. I'm pissed off. I know. And she hopes to be a motivational speaker someday. So that's, that's incredible.

And then like I said, there's that newest special, um, where the youngest siblings decided. to step forward and speak out. And it's just amazing to think that there are 13 of them and over the years more and more might decide to come forward, you know? And we probably hear more and more

details as the kids become adults and share their stories. Wow. So that's the case. Well done. Trip and fam. And there's 13 of them.

Do we know how old oldest is now? Um She was 29 in 2018 So my bath is not So eight years ago So she's 37 now Something like that

Yeah that sounds right Wow Yeah Good job Christine That's just I mean it needed pictures Like usually It did

I feel like I can get by But that man's hair I'm so I can't even know. You know what really ticks me on? You know what tease me right? Oh, is that I can't even, like, we can't even share these on Instagram because we're going to get in trouble or whatever. And I want to share them on YouTube or somewhere. Like, I want you to just Google it. Any picture you find of that man, the hair will be asked. Type in David Turpin, David and Louise Turpin,

and you'll see all sorts of versions of the hair. I'm so impressed with how they have all seem to make, like, somewhat of a full recovery. I know. They're a, it's a, So incredible. A lot healthier than I think I could be. I mean, I don't know, obviously. But like, wow, they really seem like they've been adjusting very well. Yeah. Oh, my gosh.

Great news. Well, good story, Christine. Wowza. Well, thanks. Happy Wednesday. Thanks. You too. What's your name again?

Yeah. It's just literally a letter. I, uh, yeah. Okay. Well, is that it? I just like hit a brick wall of like energy. I don't know what happened. I'm like crashing.

Oh my God, am I going to fall asleep again? There she goes, folks. All right. Well, no, please, if you know that episode, please let me know in the comments because I would love to listen. I hate it. I hate it so much. We'll see all next week.

And that's why we drink.