Teens, Guided by Teacher, Cut Themselves to Release Demons.

Posted by on June 19th, 2012

Because Florida isn’t already weird enough now that they’ve added bath salt-created, face-eating zombies to the list, a literacy teacher at Lealman and Asian Neighborhood Family Center in St. Petersburg has been jailed for performing what appears to be some kind of strange ritual involving seven children!

Just before sunrise on a Saturday morning, Danielle Harkins was with these seven children around a small fire near the St. Petersberg Pier. Harkins told the children their bodies needed to be rid of demons by cutting their skin open. Once they’d let the supposed demons out, they’d have to burn their wounds closed to prevent the demons from returning.

Police were tipped off when one of the teens sent a text message to a friend. That friend showed the message to the parents of the teen that sent it.

While none of the teens that attended the weird ritual are really opening up as to why they gathered that morning, some details have emerged. One teen suffered a cut on the neck from a broken bottle which had been cauterized by a heated key. Another teen suffered second-degree burns when the flame from a lighter Harkins was using to burn a hand-wound kept going out. Harkins then doused the teen’s hand in perfume and ignited it.

At this point no one knows the reasons behind the gathering or the bizarre ritual except for Harkins and the teens who were there.

[Miami Herald]

3 Responses to “Teens, Guided by Teacher, Cut Themselves to Release Demons.”

  1. Anonymous Says:

    Pointless!
     
    Why the next time they sneeze demons will fly up their nose to get back in.

  2. Dave Says:


    Just before dusk on a Saturday morning” Huh? =)

  3. mxyzptlk Says:

    I used to live in Ireland, and that’s why no one there ever says “bless you” after a sneeze; it’s considered offensive because you’re “blessing” the demons/faeries that you just expelled, thus inviting them back in.   

    Is there a religious angle to this story? This seems kinda culty.