Our viewpoint: If you see something, then say something

This week, California couple David and Louise Turpin were arrested and charged with torture and child endangerment after their 13 children were allegedly being held captive inside the family’s home. The children range in age from 2 to 29. One of the children, a 17-year-old girl, managed to escape the house on Sunday and called 911 from a deactivated cellphone.

Media reports said some of the children were shackled to their beds, and appeared malnourished. The story is unreal, and it’s hard to imagine how people could treat their children in such a way. Media outlets interviewed neighbors of the Turpin family, who said the children appeared pale and malnourished, that they didn’t come outside much.

Those facts should have raised red flags with the Turpins’ neighbors. You know when something isn’t right. That gut feeling you get when something appears off. Officials said that child protective services had never been called to the Turpin home. If any sort of abuse or torture was happening, and the neighbors had any inkling that something was wrong, they should have said something.

This is an extreme case. No situation should be allowed to get to the point of children being shackled to their beds. But the fact remains that cases of abuse are all too frequent, and there are ways to help.

The Sanders County Coalition for Families has a 24-hour help line available. Reports can be made anonymously. Resources are available nationally as well.

In many cases of abuse, the victim is so accustomed to the behavior that they don’t have the power to stand up for themselves. The people around them have a duty to stand up. It’s better to say something and be wrong about it, than to say nothing and find out your suspicions were right.