The Devil on Trial: David Glatzel Breaks His Silence

The first words we hear from David Glatzel in Netflix’s The Devil on Trial documentary is him introducing himself. Then he explains, “When I was 11, I was possessed by the devil.”

There was another documentary about the case, The Devil Made Me Do It Shock Docs, which premiered on discovery+ in 2021. It was also well done and examined the events that inspired the horror movie The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It.

But The Devil on Trial is better for a few reasons, one of which is because it includes David Glatzel’s testimony.

“I have never spoken to anybody about this,” he says soon after his introduction. “It’s a secret, a dark secret.”

Because it falls into the “Haunting American True Crime” category (my favorite), I’ve done a little bit of research into the case and knew that was true. His siblings have spoken publicly, but he never has—until now.

I was already interested in checking out The Devil on Trial, but the moment I saw David, I really perked up. As they did in the Devil Made Me Do It documentary, Arne Johnson, Debbie Glatzel, and Martin Minella all testify in The Devil on Trial. (Except Debbie sadly passed away from cancer, so only previous interviews are used.) But getting to hear from David was huge.

What else would it offer that the other documentary didn’t? Turns out, a lot, including testimony from his older brother Carl, who’s always contended none of it happened. He still does in The Devil on Trial, and his observations are pretty compelling.

A Very Abbreviated History

In 1980, David was an 11-year-old boy whose family believed he was possessed. During an exorcism, Arne Johnson, who was dating David’s sister Debbie, yelled at the demon (or demons) to leave David alone and take him on instead. Five months later, Arne killed a man named Alan Bono.

His defense lawyer, Martin Minnella, wanted to argue that his client was innocent due to “demonic possession,” but the judge refused to allow it. Instead, Minella fell back on a self-defense argument. A jury found Arne guilty of manslaughter, and the judge gave him the maximum sentence of 10 to 20 years, but he only served five.

Setting the Record Straight

After introducing himself, David explains why he’s agreed to participate in The Devil on Trial.

“I would love to tell you my story about the possession and the murder and Arne Johnson,” he says. “I’d like to make sure my family is portrayed with the accuracy that it should be. I know that some people have fabricated some stories, and I’m not happy with that, so I’d like to set the record straight.”

Does he? No spoilers here. That’s for each viewer to decide for themselves, but I will say he gives his best effort.

Compelling Evidence

All of the audio recordings and photographs used in The Devil on Trial are real. It also blends first-hand testimony with reenactments.

The audio recordings of possessed David are chilling and very compelling. It’s easy for the skeptic in me to say he’s faking it, but at the same time, that’d be some high-caliber acting. Not to mention ballsy. Thinking back to when I was that age, I’m not sure I’d have had the guts to try and pull off a performance like that.

But then his brother Carl provided some other interesting insight. Their Dad wasn’t buying any of the bullshit. He was working two jobs and staying out of the house as much as possible. Carl recounted how one night David was acting up, and their mom was demanding again and again for David to get up and for the devil to leave him alone.

Their father was home but in another room. He came storming in, grabbed David, slapped him, and yelled, “Get over there and sit down. Now I said to stop. No more. It’s got to stop.”

It was all caught on tape.

Carl’s comment about the incident was priceless: “And sure enough, the, uh, devil sat down and was very quiet. So I’m glad at least he listens to my father.”

The Warrens

Since Ed and Lorraine Warren played a part in the case, it’s impossible to ignore their involvement. The Devil Made Me Do It Shock Docs was biased in their favor. The Devil on Trial does a fantastic job of staying impartial.

It was interesting to hear them in action with David. Ed may have been a self-proclaimed demonologist, but he was a terrible investigator—or, rather, interrogator. Especially if how he interviewed David was indicative of his tactics. He completely led David in the questioning, often supplying his answers. Ed clearly had a certain narrative he was trying to create and prove.

Detective Glen Cooper’s testimony thawed some of my skepticism toward Lorraine. He explained he was aware of the alleged strange goings on because other officers had been called out to the Glatzel residence to investigate noise complaints and what have you.

He also recounted when the Warrens stopped by after Arne had challenged the devil during one of the exorcisms.

“Lorraine was very upset about that,” Cooper said. “She said, ‘He shouldn’t have done that.'” She also warned them she saw “serious injury with a death or a knife.”

“She wanted to put us on notice that a crime could occur,” Cooper said. “That she actually —I want to make it clear— she said, ‘I see this happening as a psychic.’ She was matter-of-fact. She didn’t look bizarre. She didn’t act bizarre. I thought she was relating what she really believed, and to her, it was real. And lo and behold, apparently, it was real.”

Sadly for Alan Bono, yes, it was.

But in the end, the Warrens duped the Glatzels. They didn’t share the money from book sales like they’d led the Glatzels to believe they would. (And they definitely didn’t share any of the movie proceeds when that happened.)

David spoke kindly of them but admitted they’d promised to make him a “rich little boy.” They didn’t. Carl felt they were more interested in documenting the drama than actually helping his little brother. He believed they could’ve —and should’ve— done things differently.

The Devil on Trial Is a Solid Doc

Overall, David and other testimony in the document verified 33 facts I’d dug up about the case. Hearing from David and his brothers Alan and Carl really rounded out the perspectives in The Devil on Trial. So did all of the other testimonies. And the producers pulled from many archives, sharing news footage, courtroom sketches, and more.

Yet, there were some surprises, too. For instance, the exorcism where Arne challenged the devil happened in a church, not the Glatzel’s home.

Another thing was that all of the brothers agreed the Warrens’s involvement was self-serving in the end. But it was sad to learn they’re estranged thanks to the case. David and Alan believe something happened. Carl still feels it was a lot of hooey.

I listened with as open a mind as I could to David Glatzel. The recordings of him were jarring. Something happened in that home. I’m still not convinced it was paranormal, but it was deeply troubling.

It appears he’s gone on to live as normal a life as possible. That’s good. And so has Arne Johnson, who actually seems like a decent guy who made a terrible mistake once upon a time.

I’ve always wondered the most about him because he claimed to have been possessed. After all, that would have been his defense if it had been allowed. But how did he become un-possessed? Did he ever undergo an exorcism?

He addressed that in The Devil on Trial. No, he was never exorcised. He just stopped being possessed.

Did The Devil on Trial clear everything up and set the record straight, as David wished? I don’t know. But I really liked the thoughtful, respectful way this documentary presented the case.

Check-In

Have you seen The Devil on Trial? If so, what do you think? If not, do you plan to watch?