Real Name: Katie (last name unrevealed)
Case: Unusual Phenomenon
Location: Florida
Date: 1974-1990?
Case
Details: A Florida housewife named "Katie" has been able to predict the future, write in foreign languages unknown to her, and produce gold and gems out of thin air. Katie claims that her first unusual experience occurred in 1974 when she saw a man walk by her and into her bedroom and disappear. Several days later, her husband brought home a family photo album. While looking through the album, she saw a picture of her deceased father-in-law (whom she had never met) and knew that he was the man that she had seen earlier.
A few months later, Katie went with police investigator Jerry Buhr to the home of a burglary. She correctly identified the house that was robbed, accurately described a blue room decorated in Japanese motif, and correctly identified the jewelry box where the items were stolen from. She also gave an accurate description of three suspects that were friends of the family who was robbed.
Later that day, Katie was in the car with Jerry when they passed a beach. She claimed that she could smell marijuana, although Jerry could not smell anything. She then went on to mention that marijuana was going to wash up on the beach within two weeks. Exactly two weeks later, twenty-five bags of marijuana did wash up on the same beach. However, police have stated that marijuana often washes up on the beach.
Starting in 1986, Katie began producing gold-type foil from her pores and was videotaped several times by her psychiatrist. The gold has appeared on her face, eyes, ears, mouth, arms, thighs, stomach, and back. She has supposedly produced the foil more than one-hundred times. In some cases, the foil has even appeared on nearby objects, such as a framed picture of her deceased mother. Several other eyewitnesses have confirmed that the gold appeared spontaneously on her body. Tests on the foil material showed that it was 80% copper and 20% zinc.
In July 1990, Katie was videotaped having a diamond-shape object fall out of her eye. She has also been shown producing a gold chain from her ear, and other objects from her mouth. Witnesses have reported seeing several other objects appear out of nowhere from her body.
Most skeptics, such as Professor Paul Kurtz, believe that she is a clever fraudster, but others believe that her mysterious powers are real. Interestingly, she has never tried to profit from her strange abilities, which lead some to believe that she is genuine.
Extra Notes: The case was featured as a part of the October 31, 1990 episode.
In this episode, two of Professor Kurtz's colleagues re-created the "gold foil" sweating by using gold leaf material purchased in an art store. They used hairspray to keep the material stuck to the body.
The "gem falling from the eye" was easily explainable by a magician who showed how she could secrete the stone in between her fingers (below her ring) easily and then pop it out at the right moment.
It has also been suggested that she is a self-harmer who inserts objects into her ears and other orifices (not an uncommon psychiatric phenomenon often found in those who self-harm).
Results: Unsolved
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