Murder or Self Defense? The subject of demonic possession was raised earlier in this book. Equally if not more disturbing are Ouija related murders. Talking boards have played a role in several real-life horrors such as the March 17, 1923, murder of Robert Murdock in Biggs, California. He had been married to his wife, Mae (some sources call her May). While we can only speculate as to the happiness (or lack thereof) in their union, it is undeniable that, seemingly out of the blue, she shot her husband four times with a revolver. Three shots entered his torso, while the fourth hit his chin. Murdock did not die instantly. Taken to the hospital, he survived for two weeks.

Before expiring, he identified his wife as the one who had pulled the trigger and added that, in his opinion, she was insane. Clinical professionals testified before the court. Some agreed with his amateur diagnosis, whereas others did not. Yet the specific trigger that had set Mae Murdock off was none other than her Ouija board. History demonstrates that "The Devil made me do it" has proven to be an ineffective defense from any crime, particularly murder. Judges and juries simply do not find it convincing. The same proved to be true with Mae Murdock's claim that the Ouija board had incited her to kill her husband -- in self-defense. The board had revealed that Robert was plotting to murder her, she insisted, and so she had no choice but to strike first.

What was Robert Murdock's motive for planning to murder his wife of 26 years? The answer could be found in Mae's diary, in which she recorded the secrets that the Ouija board had shared with her. Mae had gotten too old for his tastes and had begun sleeping with other women. He planned to use an axe to kill her, Mae had journaled, and would later tell the court that they had not had a true quarrel during their marriage -- which seems difficult to believe. The Murdock case isn't cut and dried. If Mae had developed mental illness which grew in severity until she exhibited a psychotic break, there were few obvious red flags to be found. Although one never knows what goes on behind closed doors, friends and acquaintances of the Murdocks saw no reason for alarm in the days leading up to the murder. Yet, she had gone so far as to file a police report claiming that Robert was having an affair with another woman. A patrol officer followed up on the allegation and found it to be baseless.

Upon taking the stand, Mae confessed to the shooting but denied remembering it., which meant that she did not accept responsibility for killing her husband. All she recalled was Robert chasing her in the moments leading up to the incident. Mae testified that the ghost of her dead mother had visited her during her time in prison. Although Mae had unquestionably shot her husband with intent to kill, surprisingly she was found guilty of manslaughter rather than the more serious crime of murder. After serving four years imprisonment, she regained her freedom and promptly disappeared into obscurity. It's unknown whether she ever touched a Ouija board again, though we can only hope she did not. The question remains: can the murder of Robert Murdock be explained as a case of mental illness? Or were malign influences associated with the Ouija board really to blame?.