The DEVIL on trial: Haunting new documentary lays bare twisted real-life murder case that saw 19-year-old killer using DEMONIC POSSESSION as a defense for the first – and only – time in U.S. history after he stabbed his landlord 20 TIMES
- The Devil on Trial investigates Arne Cheyenne Johnson’s murder of Alan Bono
- Johnson stabbed the 40-year-old over 20 times with a five-inch pocket knife
- And, at the core of the killer’s defense, was the alleged demonic possession
A chilling new Netflix documentary is exploring the infamous ‘Devil Made Me Do It’ case — the first and only time in U.S. history that ‘demonic possession’ was officially used as a defense in a murder trial.
The Devil on Trial investigates how 19-year-old Arne Cheyenne Johnson pleaded not guilty to the gruesome slaying of his landlord and friend, Alan Bono, in Brookfield, Connecticut, in 1981, the first murder in the town’s 193-year history.
Johnson claimed he was under the influence of Satanic forces when he stabbed the 40-year-old more than 20 times with a five-inch pocket knife after they got into an argument.
His family and friends backed up his shocking assertion, and with the help of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, his attorney contended the murder was the work of the devil.
The upcoming Netflix documentary The Devil on Trial explores the first and only time in U.S. history that ‘demonic possession’ was officially used as a defense in a murder trial
Arne Cheyenne Johnson (pictured) pleaded not guilty to the gruesome slaying of his landlord and friend, Alan Bono, in Brookfield, Connecticut, in 1981, claiming he was possessed
At the core of Johnson’s defense was the alleged demonic possession of David Glatzel, his girlfriend Deborah’s 11-year-old brother.
Months before, in July of 1980, the boy woke up crying after having a vision of a menacing old man who told him, ‘Beware.’
David claimed that he continued to see the beast, saying he would speak to him in Latin, threaten his family, and vow to take his soul, according to The Telegraph.
His family said his erratic behavior only increased in the days that followed, and Deborah asked Johnson to move into their home.
David would randomly recite passages from the Bible or Milton’s Paradise Lost, and he would shake from head to toe as if he were being attacked by an invisible force. His body was covered in scratches or bruises that couldn’t be accounted for.
Family members would take turns staying up at night to watch him, saying he would suddenly jerk up and do rapid sit-ups for 30 minutes at a time.
‘He would kick, bite, spit, swear – terrible words,’ his mother, Judy, told The New York Times in 1981.
The Glatzels, who were Catholic, were convinced that David was possessed, and reached out to their local church for help.
With the help of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren (pictured), Johnson’s attorney contended the murder was the work of the devil
At the core of Johnson’s defense was the alleged demonic possession of David Glatzel (pictured), his girlfriend Deborah’s 11-year-old brother, who became afflicted in July 1980
They alleged that St. Joseph’s Catholic Church sent priests to examine him to no avail. The church later denied that a ‘formal exorcism was asked for or performed,’ but this was disputed by the family.
Desperate to help David, they turned to the Warrens, who were known for their demonic investigations.
Lorraine recounted their meeting in an interview with People magazine, saying it was clear to them that he was possessed.
‘While Ed interviewed the boy, I saw a black, misty form next to him, which told me we were dealing with something of a negative nature,’ she said.
‘Soon the child was complaining that invisible hands were choking him — and there were red marks on him. He said that he had the feeling of being hit.’
The couple claimed that they recorded ’43 demons’ in the boy.
Judy and her husband, Carl, also took their son to see a Brookfield psychiatrist who charged $75 an hour, only to be told he was ‘normal’ with a ‘minimal learning disability.’
After their attempts to change David’s alarming and often violent behavior failed, Johnson allegedly taunted the demons to enter him instead.
David would randomly recite passages from the Bible or Milton’s Paradise Lost, and he would shake from head to toe as if he were being attacked by an invisible force
The tree surgeon, who had no prior criminal record, started showing signs of being possessed when he drove his car into a tree, according to the family.
The stress of David’s outbursts led Johnson and Deborah to move out of the house. The couple rented an apartment owned by Bono, and he hired Deborah to be a dog groomer at his kennel.
Deborah alleged that Johnson had become plagued by the same evil forces that afflicted her brother, saying he would go into a trance, growl, and claim he ‘saw the beast’ in the months leading up to Bono’s murder.
On February 16, 1981, Johnson called in sick to work and went to the kennel where Deborah worked with her nine-year-old cousin Mary and his sister Wanda.
They all went out to lunch with Bono, who reportedly drank heavily that day.
Deborah left to take the girls to get pizza, but when they returned, a drunk Bono grabbed Mary and wouldn’t let her go, according to The Mirror.
Wanda said her brother demanded that Bono release the girl before he ‘growled like an animal,’ pulled out his knife, and began stabbing him in the chest.
What started as a cut-and-dry murder case turned into a media frenzy after Lorraine told the police that Johnson was possessed when the crime was committed.
Johnson allegedly became possessed after taunting the demons to leave David and enter him. He was convicted of first-degree manslaughter and served almost five years in prison
Johnson’s shocking story was the inspiration behind the 2021 horror film The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (pictured)
The story gripped the nation at a time when fear of the occult was on the rise.
Johnson’s lawyer, Martin Minnella, traveled to England to speak with attorneys who used ‘possession’ defenses in the UK, although those cases had never gone to trial.
‘The courts have dealt with the existence of God,’ Minnella told The Times. ‘Now they’re going to have deal with the existence of the Devil.’
It was the first time demonic possession was used as a defense in a U.S. trial, but Judge Robert Callahan ultimately rejected the plea.
He said it would be ‘irrelative and unscientific’ to allow testimony for something that could never be proven.
Callahan instructed the jury not to consider demonic possession as a reason for the crime, and the defendant was convicted of first-degree manslaughter on November 24, 1981.
Johnson married Deborah and got his high school diploma while he was behind bars. He was released on good behavior after serving almost five years of his 10- to 20-year sentence.
Meanwhile, Lorraine teamed up with writer Gerald Brittle to publish a book about the case, titled The Devil in Connecticut, which was originally released in 1983.
More than 20 years later, David and brother Carl Jr. later sued the authors for violating their privacy, libel, and ‘intentional infliction of emotional distress’ after the book was republished in 2006.
Johnson’s story was also the inspiration behind the 2021 horror film The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, the third movie in the franchise.
Netflix’s upcoming documentary about the case features ‘firsthand accounts and actual recordings of alleged devil possession to tell an extraordinary story about a family that lost control,’ according to Tudum.
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