The Hauntings of the Medieval Torture Museums in Los Angeles and Chicago

Trigger Objects and Hauntings

Paranormal trigger objects are a fascinating subject that has been discussed for many years in the paranormal community. These objects are believed to have the ability to elicit supernatural activity and are said to have a strong emotional or historical connection to a particular person or event.

Many people believe that these objects can attract spirits or entities related to that person or event, and that they can be used to communicate with the dead. Examples of alleged trigger objects include personal items like jewelry or clothing, or items associated with traumatic events like weapons or toys. When you combine a trigger object with a location where haunted history has happened, you just might get a recipe to stir up some ghostly fun.

That’s why the Medieval Torture Museums in Los Angeles and Chicago are so perfect to look for a number of different types of paranormal phenomena. These buildings are connections to the fascinating pasts of the city and now you can explore these buildings as well as join us for a haunted history tour for one low price. 



Both museums are in historic buildings that have a real connection to the city, so let’s talk about how some of the terrifying trigger objects at the torture museum could connect to real life haunted stories…

The Colombian Necktie

In the drug underworld of 1980s Colombia, it was said that snitches met a gruesome fate. Their throats were slashed, and their tongues pulled out through the wounds, in a practice known as the "Colombian necktie." The aim was to silence witnesses and intimidate others who might talk to the police. Defense attorney Johnnie Cochran Jr. invoked this gruesome method in the O.J. Simpson trial, suggesting that the victims, Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman, might have been the targets of drug dealers due to one of Ms. Simpson's friends' alleged cocaine use. US DEA spokesman Ralph Lochridge stated that such murders were an attempt to silence witnesses and send a message to anyone else who might be inclined to cooperate with the police and snitch - that this is what happens to their wagging tongues.



Now while there haven’t been any actual reports of a Colombian Necktie in the United States, it has certainly entered the realm of our public imagination. Indeed, when a Florida woman named Priscilla Ellis attempted to order a "Colombian necktie" hit from jail on her former boyfriend, the prosecution argued that the Colombian necktie is an "unfathomably barbaric method of murder" and sought the maximum sentence of 85 years. The judge sentenced her to another 20 years in prison and ten years of probation afterwards for just trying to create a “formal wear” situation.

Now, on October 24th 1937, a man named Les Bruneman was eating in the building that houses the Medieval Torture Museum today, the Montmartre, a famous restaurant and club at the time on Hollywood Boulevard. Bruneman was a gangster that specialized in illegal gambling and he ran his operation, right here in the lower level of the building. Later that night October 24th, he goes with his nurse (from a previous gunshot wound) to Roost Cafe where Bruneman throws down $20 on the bar saying to everyone that drinks were on him. A few minutes later, gangsters Leo "the Lip" Moceri and Frank "the Bomp" Bompensiero walked in. Moceri shot Bruneman in the left eye, killing him instantly, and fired seven more shots into his body. A waiter runs out after them to try and get their car license plate and they shoot him three times in the stomach, and he dies.



The LA County Undersheriff at the time, Arthur Jewell, later said that Bruneman had asked him for a gun permit and had offered to exchange “valuable information about the racket” for it. In 1952 Jewell himself had to resign after a corruption scandal, so could he have sold Bruneman out for attempting to “sing” to the cops? We don’t know, but Bruneman gets killed like Moe Greene in The Godfather, shot in the eye, and that was based on how Bugsy Siegel himself was assassinated in 1947. With Bruneman however, were they sending a message to other criminals who might be thinking about talking to the police? Could Les Bruneman still be around his place of business? Where he used to gamble and party, where the drinks were always on him?

The Electric Chair

Even though famous Chicago band Big Black (featuring music super producer and legendary Windy City curmudgeon Steve Albini) wrote a song called “Colombian Necktie”, there hasn’t been any reports of it happening anywhere in America, nevermind Chicago. But another morbid trigger object that you can see at both Medieval Torture Museums is the electric chair. Let’s see how it connects to Chicago History….

It was in 1882 that Albert Southwick, an American dentist, proposed the idea of using electricity for a painless and swift execution. A dentist suggesting a painless way to get something done? I almost don’t believe it. 



The government approved of the idea, and several engineers and scientists were involved in its development. One of them was Thomas Edison, who took on the task of perfecting the electric chair in 1886. The first execution using the electric chair was carried out in 1890, and it was made of wood, which was improved over time. The execution process involved strapping the criminal to the chair and attaching electrodes to their body. After reading the verdict, the executioner turned on the current, causing the criminal's body to shudder, fingers to dig into the armrests, and eyes to roll up. If the first charge didn't kill, the procedure was repeated. The electric chair was used in 26 states during the 20th century, and over 4,300 people were executed using it throughout history. However, in recent decades, it has fallen out of favor and has been replaced by other forms of execution that seem to be more painless (sorry Dr. Southwick), such as lethal injection.

But back in the early 1920s in Chicago, the Electric Chair overtook hanging as the form of execution of choice at the Cook County Courthouse. Coincidentally, the Courthouse was designed by the same person, Chicago architect John van Osdel, as the building that houses the Chicago torture museum, the Page Brothers Building. This buliding was one of the first erected after the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and Osdel was known as the original architect who built most of mid-19th Century Chicago. 

The courthouse is said to be haunted by ghosts of inmates and victims of some of the city's most notorious criminals. Over the years, many people have reported hearing strange noises, seeing dark figures, and feeling a chilling presence in the building.



One of the most spine-tingling ghost stories from the courthouse involves a deputy sheriff named Mike. During one of his night shifts in March of 2006, Mike was sitting alone inside the courthouse when he experienced something he will never forget. At around 3 a.m., he started hearing a strange melody of whistling. He initially thought someone was playing a prank on him, but the whistling persisted. When he got up to investigate, he found that the file cabinet was empty and no one was around. Suddenly, the Styrofoam cups on the file cabinet went flying, leaving Mike completely spooked.

Staff members have also reported hearing strange noises on the eighth floor of the courthouse, which has been closed off for years. According to rumors that still circulate among the staff, the eighth floor served as a morgue until fifty years ago. Some staff members have reported hearing commotion from behind the locked doors and feeling a sense of dread when they pass by.

Despite the many ghost stories that surround the Cook County Courthouse, it remains an important part of Chicago's history. From the gallows built for the Haymarket Riot that are now part of Ripley's Believe It or No t to the holding cells that once housed some of the country's most notorious criminals, the courthouse is a testament to the city's past. 

Now you can explore the haunted history of Los Angeles and Chicago while also exploring these historic buildings and the Medieval Torture Museum. Click below for the combo deal (and save up to 25% on admission to the museum and on one of our signature tours!) Walking and bus tours are available in each city.

Los Angeles

MEDIEVAL TORTURE MUSEUM + BUS TOUR

MEDIEVAL TORTURE MUSEUM + WALKING TOUR

Chicago

MEDIEVAL TORTURE MUSEUM + BUS TOUR

MEDIEVAL TORTURE MUSEUM + WALKING TOUR 

Dive deeper into the mysterious world of hauntings with our curated collection of paranormal investigations and ghostly encounters. Read more stories like this in “Ghosts of Lincoln Park: A Chicago Hauntings Companion” by Ursula Bielski, a book of downtown Chicago ghost stories written by our own American Ghost Walks team. Click here for more.

Dive deeper into the mysterious world of hauntings with our curated collection of paranormal investigations and ghostly encounters. Read more stories like this in “The Original Chicago Hauntings Companion” by Ursula Bielski, a book of Chicago ghost stories written by our own American Ghost Walks team. Click here for more.

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