The devil made me do it may sound familiar because the third Conjuring movie has the same title and this real-life event inspired the film.
The trial of Arne Johnson, also known as the devil made me do it case, Is the first known court case in the United States in which the defense sought to prove innocence, that he was demonically possessed, and the denial of personal responsibility for the crime he committed.
Let's dive right into this story. The sequence of events that take place might be disturbing and distressing to some viewers. Viewer discretion is advised.
This story begins in the 1980s with the possession of an 11-year-old boy named David Glatzel. Now that he and his family had purchased a rental property, David started seeing a ghostly figure that could only be described as an old man with big black eyes, a thin face with animal features, and jagged teeth.
His parents would become angry with him and say that he made this story up in order to avoid doing housework.
But David would often reply with very evil threats about what would happen if they ever tried to leave the house, even though they had simply purchased it to fix it up and rent it out.
David's parents decided that this would be as good a time as any to move in. This is where things really started to spiral downward for the family.
David kept telling his parents that the old man was appearing more and more, and his figure was starting to change into this demonic wolf... and this wolf-type creature would curse him in Latin; it also told him it would eat his soul.
David himself started to change too, after experiencing multiple seizures and strange injuries, such as bruises and scratches all over his body. David claimed that he was beaten by this demonic entity.
The family reached out to the Catholic Church, but they were unsuccessful in getting David the help they needed.
Then, after some searching around, they got in contact with Ed and Lorraine Warren. They would observe David and see what the steps would be to overcome this demonic entity that was overtaking him.
If you didn’t know, Ed and Lorraine Warren were a married couple that was famously known for the paranormal and demonic investigations they did around the nation.
According to the Warrens, they saw David levitate during one of the exorcisms they performed on the boy.
They would go on to state that David also had multiple demons. They were able to identify at least 43 demons that were attached to the boy.
After the Warrens contacted the Catholic Church, letting them know that the case that the Glatzel family called about was the real deal, and after talking to the Warrens, the church took the case more seriously and sent out a priest to carry out an exorcism.
In total, there were at least three exorcisms performed. During one of the exorcisms, David's sister Debbie had her boyfriend Arnie attend in order to comfort her.
It's said that Arnie, in a last-ditch effort to help David, offered himself up to the demon as a way to save the young boy. He said, "Let the boy go and take me instead."
According to eyewitnesses, he was attacked during this, and when driving home, the demon reportedly tried to steer his car into a tree.
When Arnie returned to the house by himself, it was at this point that this thing actually took over him. Debbie stated that after that night, Arnie was always seen staring off into space.
One day, while he was in one of these trances, staring out the window, he told Debbie that he could see an old man. (It was the same old man that the young boy David saw.)
After Arne started showing strange behavior that was very similar to David's, Debbie feared that the demon had taken over him.
Debbie was hired by a dog groomer named Alan Bono. Who was also their landlord. To understand, Debbie worked at Brookfield Kennels, which was a dog grooming place, and their apartment was located directly above the store.
This is where things seem to take a very dark turn.
On February 16, 1981, Arnie called in sick to his job at Wright Tree Service, where he worked, and joined Debbie at the kennel where she worked, along with his sister Wanda and Debbie's nine-year-old cousin Mary.
Alan, who was the couple's landlord and Debbie's boss at the Brookfield Kennel, bought the group lunch at a local bar. Alan had a little too much to drink.
After lunch, the group left the local bar and returned to the store. At this point, it was obvious that Alan just had way too much to drink, and Debbie decided, "Ok, it's time to get the girls out of there.
It was said that as they were about to leave, Alan grabbed Debbie's cousin and wouldn't let her go. Arnie, seeing this, tried to pull him away, and it was at this point that he started snarling like an animal at Alan.
Then it escalated to the point where Arne pulled out a pocket knife and attacked him with it, stabbing Alan several times, which led to his death.
This led to the first murder in the history of Brookfield, Connecticut.
What's strange is that Lorraine Warren called the police in Brookfield several days before the murder and told them to keep their eyes on the family; she had a bad feeling something very bad was going to happen.
Arne, without a doubt, committed the crime, but he has no memory of ever committing it. In fact, he was shocked when he found out what had even happened.
This is where things take a turn that will forever change history.
According to Lorraine Warren, she contacted the Brookfield police weeks before Bono’s murder, telling them she had "a bad feeling" and to keep an eye on the Glatzel family. Following the crime, she called again and alleged knowledge that Arne Johnson was under demonic possession.
Johnson claims to have absolutely no recollection of the events, and as Ed and Lorraine Warren fanned the media’s interest, Johnson’s lawyer sided with them, proclaiming he intended to mount a defense of "demonic possession."
The Glatzel family's plight went public as the "Demon Murder Trial" took the small town of Brookfield by storm. The Warrens claimed they could offer indisputable proof that Arne Cheyenne Johnson was under the influence of "diabolical forces" when he attacked Alan Bono.
However, despite the Warrens claims, Judge Robert Callahan promptly rejected the defense of possession, stating there was "absolutely no evidence for such an outlandish claim."
On November 24, 1981, after a hastily arranged plea of self-defense, a jury found Arne Cheyenne Johnson guilty of first-degree manslaughter. Judge Robert Callahan imposed a sentence of 10–20 years; however, 19-year-old Johnson was freed after only 5.
In the years since this sensational media spectacle, the Demon Murder Case has simply refused to go away. The murder set a legal precedent, as it was the first time in history that a defense of demonic possession had ever been attempted.
This is why it's so important to be rooted in Christ and be surrounded by other followers of Christ. So that we can use the tools and have the prayers we need in times like this.
Have you ever experienced anything like this? I would love to hear your story.
That does it for today's story. Hit that thumbs up, and until next time, God bless.
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