The trial that shocked America
Back in 2021, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It dropped in cinemas – and it was a commercial success, gaining $206.4 million at the box office.
The film, which is inspired by the story of the Devil Made Me Do It case, follows the 1981 trial of Arne Cheyenne Johnson, a young man who claimed he had been possessed by a supernatural entity to murder his landlord Alan Bono.
While to many, it would seem like a tremendously outlandish defense, it was officially put to the court when the case went to trial.
An expert ghost hunting team were enlisted to prove Johnson’s innocence who claimed that they had visited Johnson’s house previously and had attempted to rid a demon from another child. That demon was said to enter Johnson just months before he killed Alan Bono.
New Netflix doc inspired The Conjuring sequel
Ultimately the case went against Johnson and the evidence of demonic possession was thrown out. Johnson went onto do five years in prison for manslaughter – however it was still a landmark moment for the US Justice System.
Of course, the case inspired the third Conjuring movie, but now a new Netflix docuseries has been released about the case itself.
Netflix describe the show, called The Devil On Trial, as an exploration of “the first – and only – time ‘demonic possession’ has officially been used as a defense in a US murder trial.”
They continue: “Including firsthand accounts of alleged devil possession and a shocking murder, this extraordinary story forces reflection on our fear of the unknown.”
The Devil on Trial is available to watch on Netflix now.
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