Trial of Arne Cheyenne Johnson

The Trial of Arne Cheyenne Johnson, also known as the "Devil Made Me Do It" case, is a 1981 court case in the United States. It is the first known case in the United States in which the defense tried to prove a person was not guilty because they were possessed by a demon. They said that since the person on trial was possessed by a demon, he was not responsible for the crime.^[1]

On November 24, 1981, in Brookfield, Connecticut, Arne Cheyenne Johnson was found guilty of first-degree manslaughter for the killing of his landlord, Alan Bono.^[2] According to testimony by the Glatzel family, 11-year-old David Glatzel had been a host to a demon. After they saw many very bad things happen that involved David, the family asked Ed and Lorraine Warren for help. They saw it as their last hope to "cure" David. The Glatzel family, with the Warrens, had many priests ask the Church to have a formal exorcism performed on David.^[3] The exorcism lasted for several days. Those people who were there said that it ended when a demon left the child's body. They said the demon moved into the body of Arne. These events were written about in the book The Devil In Connecticut by Gerald Brittle.

Several months after the exorcism, Arne killed his landlord during a party. His lawyer told the court that he was possessed. The judge said that this could never be proven. He said that this defense could not be used in a court of law. Arne was found guilty of the crime. He was sent to prison for 10 to 20 year but only spent 5 years in prison.

The trial attracted media attention from around the world . The case became well known because of the many depictions of the events in books and on television. The story was later made into a movie titled The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021).

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