Chicago, Illinois, 1977 - The night was cold, and smoke curled up from an apartment high above the city’s Edgewater neighborhood. Firefighters rushed inside the building to discover a horrifying scene: the lifeless body of Teresita Basa, partially burned, with a butcher knife buried in her chest. On the surface, it appeared to be a crime of opportunity. A robbery, perhaps? But the trail went cold almost immediately. Police had no witnesses, no suspects, and no clear motive. For months, it seemed the truth behind Teresita’s murder was lost to [...]

Polstead, Suffolk, 1827. A quiet village is haunted by whispers of betrayal, blood, and the supernatural. Maria Marten, just 25 years old, slipped away late one evening to meet her lover, William Corder: a man who had promised her a new life, but delivered a tragic and untimely death. Months after their secret elopement, Maria’s body would be found hidden inside a local landmark, the Red Barn. How she was discovered, however, is an even more peculiar story... Broken Promises Maria was young, in love, and on the cusp of [...]

Sometimes, the line between a dream home and a living nightmare can be paper-thin. Little did one New Jersey family know, this hard truth would haunt them for years... Picture this: It's 2014, and Derek and Maria Broaddus have just purchased their dream home at 657 Boulevard in the town of Westfield, New Jersey— an affluent and sought-after area. The purchase at first seemed like achieving a lifelong dream. Maria was born and raised in Westfield, always desiring to return. Derek grew up in working-class Maine and climbed the [...]

Buckle up, supernatural sleuths. We’re diving into the curious legal saga of Chico Xavier v. de Campos— a case where the lines between life, death, and copyright law became rather blurry in a 1940s Brazilian courtroom. Today, we'll explore the legal battle that famously asked the question: Who exactly gets paid when a ghost writes a book? The Medium and the Muse: Chico Xavier’s Ghostly Inspiration Our tale begins with Francisco Cândido Xavier, better known as Chico Xavier, a spiritual medium and prolific author from Brazil who was famous for [...]

Our case begins on the rocky landscape of post-World War 1 America. The year is 1919, a time of societal and economic recovery. Soldiers returned from war ready to build a new life for themselves: find a career, start a family, etc... But to do so, they needed that cold hard cash. Oil was (and still is) a hot commodity, and striking it meant instant riches. In this world of change and rebuilding, everyone wanted a piece of that black gold. Enter Mr. Hermameyer, a man with dreams of wealth [...]

Have you ever moved into a new home, only to find out it came with some unwanted guests? We’re not talking about noisy neighbors or pesky squirrels in the attic—no, this story’s got a twist that’s straight out of a ghost story. In 1991, a civil case made its way to the Appellate Division of New York's Supreme Court, one that would later set a bizarre and paranormal precedent. The case? Stambovsky v. Ackley. The subject? Breaking the contract of a home sale. At a glance, this case may not [...]

Picture this— It’s 1971, a year buzzing with rebellion, counterculture, and, apparently, lawsuits against the Devil himself. Yes, you heard that right. This real-life legal case brought by Gerald Mayo, a 22-year-old prisoner, has the bizarre distinction of being one of the most unusual in American judicial history. The case is called Gerald Mayo v. Satan and His Staff, and it reads like something out of a supernatural thriller. Our protagonist, Gerald Mayo, found himself sitting in a prison cell after committing a series of high-level crimes - severe enough [...]

In 1692, an overwhelming fear of the devil spread through the town of Salem, a seaside village located in modern-day Danvers, Massachusetts. For the next year, ordinary people-primarily women- were accused, tried, and killed in the name of "committing witchcraft" and "consorting with the devil." The events that took place in Salem would later cement themselves in American history as an ominous example of how fear of the unknown, and lack of a fair trial, can lead to immense injustice and disaster. From Whence The Witches Came To better understand [...]

On February 16, 1981, Alan Bono was found stabbed to death on the floor of a dog kennel facility - a gruesome murder committed under the most vexing and terrifying of circumstances. This was the first homicide to occur in Brookfield, Connecticut's 193-year history. The perpetrator, 19-year-old Arne Cheyenne Johnson, was arrested by local police shortly following the murder. Although the crime appeared out-of-character for Johnson, who had no prior criminal record or history of violence, law enforcement viewed the attack as a cut-and-dry homicide case - a landlord and [...]

Elva Zona Heaster, fondly known as Zona, was a beautiful bride on the cusp of life. She had fallen madly in love with the town heartthrob - a blacksmith named Erasmus Shue. They courted for a brief time before deciding to tie the knot. Zona's mother, Mary Heaster, was concerned about her daughter's rugged new suitor from the start. There was something unsettling about this man, but at the time, Mary could not explain her uneasy feelings. These wary emotions, however, were not without reason. Unbeknownst to both Zona and [...]