California's Bigfoot Lawsuit: Researcher's Quest for Species Recognition

Court cases with a paranormal twist can be some of the most fascinating and bizarre cases out there. In a video from the YouTube channel On Strange Tides, five such cases are discussed. I was excited to come across this video and share it with our readers. The first case discussed in the video is that of Elvisa Shoe, who was found dead at the bottom of her stairs in 1897. Her husband, Arasmus, was initially ruled out as a suspect, but things took a strange turn when Elvisa's mother, Mary Jane, claimed to have been visited by her daughter's ghost. According to Mary Jane, Elvisa had detailed how Arasmus had beaten and abused her, ultimately killing her by breaking her neck. Despite initial skepticism, an autopsy revealed that Elvisa did indeed have a broken neck and other injuries consistent with abuse. Arasmus was eventually arrested and charged with murder, and was convicted after only an hour and 10 minutes of jury deliberation. This case is notable for being the first time that a ghost statement was allowed as evidence in a trial. The second case discussed in the video is that of Claudia Akley, a Bigfoot researcher who claimed to have seen a Sasquatch in the San Bernardino Mountains. Akley was so convinced that what she saw was not a bear that she decided to sue the state of California's Department of Fish and Wildlife and the natural resources agency to make them recognize Bigfoot as an actual species. Unfortunately, Akley died of a heart attack before the case could be refiled. However, her efforts have sparked a larger conversation about the recognition of Bigfoot as a species and the importance of protecting these elusive creatures. The third case discussed in the video is that of Larry Sanders, who claimed to have killed his friend Jimmy in self-defense while noodling in a river in Oklahoma. According to Sanders, Jimmy had been acting strangely and howling like a Bigfoot, leading Sanders to believe that he was trying to lure a Sasquatch to kill him. Sanders was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison, despite his claims of self-defense. This case highlights the dangers of methamphetamine addiction and the importance of taking all claims of self-defense seriously. The fourth case discussed in the video is that of Dorothy Ramsay, who attended a seance with her daughter and estranged husband Fred in 1976. During the seance, a self-proclaimed psychic named Joanne Denton told Dorothy that she was going to die on April 10th in a car accident. Dorothy did indeed die on that day, but not from a car accident. Dorothy's daughter accused Joanne Denton of witchcraft and attempted to have her charged under a 1951 law that forbade fortune telling, palmistry, and other similar witchcrafts. However, the case was eventually dismissed when it was discovered that Fred Ramsay had actually made the predictions and had recently taken out life insurance on Dorothy. The fifth and final case discussed in the video is that of Brazilian psychograph Chico Xavier, who wrote over 450 books that he claimed were channeled from different spirits. Xavier was a hero in his home country for his philanthropy and spiritualism, and his funeral procession was over 2 and 1/2 miles long and included 30,000 people. However, Xavier was sued in 1944 by the widow of another famous author, Umberto de Campa, who felt that she was entitled to part of the proceeds from Xavier's books that had supposedly been ghost written by her dead husband. The court ruled in Xavier's favor, stating that there was no way to prove mediumship and that dead people did not have a right to work. Overall, the cases discussed in this video are a fascinating glimpse into the world of the paranormal and the legal system. As Bigfoot believers, we at Squatchable encourage our readers to watch the video and draw their own conclusions.