Life After Paranormals: Season 3, Episode 15

As a mother, Jennifer Coffeen was fond of children ... but she had no idea how to handle the paranormal spirit of a little boy roaming through her house! Go behind the scenes of "The Innocent."

You started to experience some unexplainable things pretty quickly. How soon did you realize that something was off about the house, and what was the tipping point to make you believe it was paranormal?
I started experiencing things right away – the very first day that we moved into our home. I'd have to say, what made me realize that it was paranormal was then probably by the second day. 

When my son and daughter came to me on separate occasions and told me that they've seen a man I knew right then and there that it was definitely paranormal. My son had seen the man walking out of my bedroom into the dining room. My daughter had seen the man walking on our front porch. When my son had seen the man walking out of the bedroom… [the man] was walking with his hands out, reaching towards my dining room table and he just disappeared. Vanished.

The first time that you saw the little boy in the house, what was going through your head?
I thought at first it was my little boy running into my bedroom, and then I realized – "Wait a minute, my boys are bigger than this!" I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I was shocked.

Are you able to describe what the little boy looked like when you saw him?
He was pretty clear to see. It looked like when you have the sun shining real bright in a window. I could totally see him. I could totally make him out. I could see his hair, his face, all his features and everything, but yet it was like a ray of sunshine. I honestly don't know how to describe it.

You met Kari when you found her sitting in her truck crying. How did you feel when you discovered her story?
My husband and I had just gotten home. She was in the street across from my house, staring at my house. We got in the house and I asked my son, "Hey, do you know who this woman is?" Ten minutes later, I'm like "You need to go outside and see if she's lost or something. She's just sitting there, staring at our house."

I looked out the window and I notice that she was pointing and showing him a newspaper. I went to get my shoes on to go outside, and as I was going out, [my son] was going in, and he told us that we needed to go talk to her because she was the sister of a little boy that was murdered or had died in our house. My heart just sank.

When we were experiencing all the things that we were experiencing with the paranormal stuff in our house and after we found out about the little boy, I often thought of his family. But I never thought it would ever come about that I would meet somebody from his family. It just broke my heart because she had no clue.

Was there a different sensation in the room when you were near the spirit of the little boy versus the spirit of the older man?
I would have to say yes, but I think I was haunted more by the man than the little boy. I guess there were times that I would hear things, and it wasn't as scary, and there were other times that I just did not feel safe and I just had to get out of my house. I remember the time I was doing dishes, and I could feel somebody breathing down my neck. I just stopped doing dishes and got out.

There were times that I didn't feel safe, and there were times that I felt something was there, but I didn't feel like I was going to be harmed. So I would say yeah, there was a different feeling.

What did you expect to find when you decided to call in the paranormal investigators?
I didn't know what to expect. I didn't really tell people, friends or anything, [about the paranormal experiences] because I didn't want people to think I was crazy. I knew there was something there. I knew that [the paranormal team] would find answers to what was going on.

After hearing the recording of the man saying "murder," did you get concerned staying in the house?
A little bit. It scared the crap out of me because it was recorded here in my house. There was another recording saying "Go Home" and I didn't know what that meant. Was it telling us to go home – like get out of this house because we didn't belong there because we had just moved there – or was it telling the paranormal team to go home?

Do you think there was anything specific that may have provoked the older man's spirit to come after your son?
Less than two months ago, I had [Kari] over along with the paranormal team. We all met here and I gave her a walk through my home. She has not been here since she was a little girl. She wanted to see if she remembered anything. What's really strange is, my bedroom where the man came out of – she told me was her bedroom and her little brother, Chris'. The bedroom where my oldest son's leg would be grabbed and he'd be pulled on… that was the bedroom of the man. I think he was looking at my children as victims next. 

You held a passing over ceremony. Can you describe what that process was like?
I was not there for that process. I left. I thought maybe they would have a better investigation or do better without my family.

After holding the passing over ceremony, have you experienced any other paranormal phenomena in the home? Does the home feel different?
I have not had anything. My home feels very different. It's very quiet. After the passing over, I kept expecting it to come back, and there's nothing. No negative feeling. It's peaceful. I can go to my basement by myself. There's just nothing here. People always ask me, "Oh, is your house haunted?" and I say no.

If you were to experience something else paranormal, how would you go about handling it?
I would definitely call the paranormal team again. I truly, 100%, believe in them. I believe in Scotty [Rorek, the psychic medium]. I believe in Tim [Maile, from the paranormal team]. I believe in the whole team. They're very, very professional on what they did. No doubt in my mind that I would call them.

How has this experience shaped your life?
I'd have to say, it's made me a stronger person. I think it's changed me in ways. I think I look at things a lot different. There was a reason this happened to us - why we were the ones chosen to get this house.