Florida Court: Demonic Possession Not A Defense

The Miami Herald reports this afternoon that Lazaro Galindo, a professed reformed satanist was found guilty of murder in the death of Argelio Gonzalez. Galindo, who is already serving 45 years on a probation revocation for child molestation was unfazed when judgment was pronounced.

"B-b-but Sparky!" you say, "What's this about s-s-satanism?"

It was Galindo's defense that a demonic spirit instructed him to kill Gonzalez. But just to show he was reformed, Galindo, who represented himself, alleged he'd renounced the Dark One and all his works because he'd found God over the weekend in jail.

The decedent, Gonzalez, was found dismembered in two trashbags dumped in a park.

We've recently had our own run in with this sort of thing. Terry Joe Williams was convicted in the murder of Matthew Stegman in Woodland Cemetery. It was Williams' contention that he'd had a vision that Stegman was going to molest the daughter of a friend so he, Williams, had to take matters into his own hands. As of last week, Williams was going to have a lifetime to ponder the meaning of that vision in Anamosa or Fort Madison.