The chilling emergency call made by the 17-year-old daughter of a California couple accused of holding their 13 children captive, has been played a key hearing for the pair.

Prosecutors played the 20-minute 911 call at a preliminary hearing to determine if the couple is to stand trial over charges including alleged torture and child abuse. Both Mr and Ms Turpin have pleaded not guilty to all charges.

“My parents are abusive,” their daughter told the dispatcher in the call played to the courtroom. “They abuse us and my two little sisters right now are chained up.”

And when she struggled to remember the address of the home, the 911 operator asked her if she was around the corner from her house. “Yeah, I think,” the girl said. “I've never been out. I don't go out much.”

Asked by the dispatcher why her sisters were chained up, she said it was because one of her siblings told her mother she was “worse than the devil.”

Mr and Mrs Turpin were arrested in January after the teenager climbed out of a window and called 911 from a disconnected cell phone.

Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents Show all 15 1 /15 Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents David and Louise Turpin with their 13 children who were being held captive by their parents in the family home in Perris, California. Facebook Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin speaks during a press conference announcing charges against David Turpin and Louise Turpin in relation to their 13 malnourished children found chained in their home, in Riverside. The two parents were charged with multiple counts of Child abuse, torture, abuse of dependent adults and false imprisonment and could face close to 100 years to life in prison if convicted. EPA Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents The home of David Allen and Louise Anna Turpin, where some of their children were bound with chains and padlocks. Reuters Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents David Allen Turpin poses for a mugshot after being arrested. Riverside County Sheriffs Department via Getty Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents One of the captives, a 17-year-old girl, escaped over the weekend and notified the Riverside Sheriff’s Department. Facebook/David-Louise Turpin Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents Perris residents watch as media gather in front of Turpin family home. The Sheriff's deparmtent said "the parents were unable to immediately provide a logical reason why their children were restrained in that manner." AFP/Getty Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents The children were found in dark and foul-smelling surroundings and "The victims appeared to be malnourished and very dirty,” the department said. Facebook/David-Louise Turpin Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents Neighbours stand outside the home. Getty Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents Louise Anna Turpin poses for a mugshot after being arrested. Not all of their victims were children: of the 13 victims, seven were between the age of 18 and 29, according to the Sheriff's Department. Riverside County Sheriffs Department via Getty Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents David and Louise Turpin in 2015. Authorities arrested them on torture and child endangerment charges, setting bail at $9m (£6.5m) apiece. Facebook/David-Louise Turpin Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents David Turpin and Louise Turpin appear in court for their arraignment in Riverside Reuters Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents David Allen Turpin and his wife, Louise Anna Turpin celebrate a renewal of their wedding vows with Elvis impersonator Kent Ripley in Las Vegas in 2011 A Elvis Chapel via AP Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents David Allen Turpin appears in court for his arraignment in Riverside. Prosecutors filed 12 counts of torture, seven counts of dependent adult abuse, six counts of child abuse and 12 counts of false imprisonment against Turpin and his wife, Louise Anna Turpin. The Press-Enterprise via AP Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents Neighbour Liza Tozier, and her son, Avery Sanchez, 6, drop off his large "Teddy" as a gift for the children. AP Turpin family: 13 siblings who were held captive by their parents Louise Turpin appears in court for her arraignment in Riverside. Authorities say the abuse left the children malnourished, undersized and with cognitive impairments. Reuters

The children range in age from 2 to 29, with many having appeared much younger when they found due to malnutrition and muscle wasting, according to Riverside County District Attorney Michael Hestrin. Officers reportedly thought the siblings were all minors due to their frail condition, but later learned that seven of the 13 were adults.

“Sometimes I wake up and I can’t breathe because of how dirty the house is,” the 17-year-old told dispatcher. She said she had not bathed in a year.

The girl can be heard struggling to spell her name. She said on the call that she had not finished first grade.

Mrs Turpin was reportedly seen crying in the courtroom as she listened to the 911 recording on Wednesday.

During the court hearing, Riverside County Sheriff’s Deputy Manuel Campos detailed some of the interviews he undertook with the Turpin children.

Once, the 17-year-old said, her mother found she had watched a Justin Bieber video, and started choking her and asked, “do you want to die?” .