Experience paranormal activity in haunted tour of old Doña Ana County Courthouse
David Crider can tell a good story. Over the phone, Crider, co-owner with Miguel Abbud of Backhand Entertainment, spun a fascinating web around the things that had gone bump in the night, and in the day, at the old Doña Ana County Courthouse.
The abandoned courthouse, located at 251 W. Amador Ave., is believed to be haunted and has been investigated by numerous organizations, including "Ghost Adventures," an American television series about the paranormal. It's also the site of Las Cruces' first Zombie Fest, taking place from 7 p.m. to midnight Saturday, Oct. 27. Along with other festivities, the event will include haunted tours of the building — longer paranormal investigation tours are also offered regularly on certain days of the week. Rather than simply explaining the tours hosted by Backhand Entertainment, Crider had another offer: Come try the immersive experience too, and bring some members of the Las Cruces Sun-News.
It had been an unusual day in Las Cruces, dark and stormy, leading perfectly into an evening exploration at the looming three-story courthouse. It’s a building that you’ve likely driven by thousands of times, and perhaps haven’t given a lot of thought to. Or, you may remember going in for business if you’ve lived in the area longer, or debated the development of such a prized real estate downtown if you have an eye for it.
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It’s a beautiful building, in slight decay but a realtor would tell you it has great bones. It’s massive too, covering more than 36,000 square feet. As our investigative team assembled, Crider reviewed the stories he told me on the phone for the small crew that would be going with me: Sun-News photographer Robin Zielinski, Sun-News staffer Maria Del Villar and her older brother Hector Del Villar, my friend Tina Ballew and my husband Jorge Aguirre.
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In the bright light on the first floor, Crider talked about hearing the sound of footsteps that construction workers made when those workers, or anyone else, weren't present. He also spoke of the little girl’s voice — caught on tape and played for us — and the description of the blood on the floor with one solitary footprint, determined by a local police investigator to be from a little girl. There were also doors closing and faces in the windows.
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Sufficiently spooked, we started part one of the experience, being led into the adobe main building with LED lanterns, and up the winding stairs into a huge open room, where Crider continued with his stories. Built in 1937, Crider’s description of the courthouse being a “grand old lady” felt right. We were in the main echoing chamber where trials had been held. It's a room that may eventually be converted into a ballroom by a hotel chain in the process of purchasing the courthouse, according to Crider. Enormous iron chandeliers from Spain laid tilted in a corner.
In the middle of the room was a board with old plans from the construction of the courthouse pinned to it; Crider beckoned me to read the name of two small rooms, now used as closets, titled as the “Insane" rooms. This was mental health as normal in years past, and now a hotbed for paranormal activity.
The courthouse is in a bit of a sad state, but the decay fit the stories. It was purchased after 2008 by someone who had not quite decided what to do with it. Bits and pieces have been ripped out; jail bars burned out of the ceiling. Rooms and sections had been boarded up, but when torn off recently, revealed staircases and hidden rooms. We hiked up to peer into the rooms, and to hear about the judge who may have never left and who can sometimes be seen from the windows peering onto Amador Avenue.
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Going back down, it was now up to us to explore the jail cells of the prison, alone as a team, as the guides sat in a control booth with infrared cameras watching for signs of activity. Part of the immersion experience was that our group was handed equipment: two camcorders, two cameras, one radio with an earpiece, three EMF meters (electromagnetic fields supposedly indicative of a presence), a temperature meter (a drop in temperature implies a visitation), and a map with notation of where activity had been seen or heard.
I held the map and the radio, and Robin and Hector had the infrared camcorders that were to be our eyes. We wasted a good bit of time just shuffling into the darkness of the first jail cell. Mostly we scared ourselves until we warmed up and did sessions, asking spirits if they were there when our meters went off in tandem, asking if they needed help or what year it was. Surprisingly, asking about pizza seemed to be the best response.
Did I leave a believer? I went in as a version of the X-Files’ Mulder: I want to believe. I was already primed from childhood years of reading the most boring, true-life ghost stories before bedtime. I worried about taking a ghost back home in the days before. I was happy to have my husband and a big brother, even if not mine, in tow.
Turns out, I don’t think ghosts really thought I was gifted enough to specifically talk to.
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That said, the most unsettling bit happened nearly at the beginning of the tour, with Hector, Maria and I in the back of the group as we slipped into a hallway. A female voice called out to us in a low murmur from the shadows of where we came, and all three of us did a “Did you hear that?”
We’ll have to wait for the analysis of our video and cameras, done by Out West Paranormal Investigators and given to the team later if there was any activity seen on the footage. An investigative tour, or Paranormal Experience, like this runs $40 per person and is offered regularly, Wednesdays through Saturdays, during two time slots: from 7 to 9 p.m. and from 9:30 to 11:30 p.m. The age minimum for the tour is 16 years old, and they must be accompanied by a parent or responsible adult. To book a Paranormal Experience, call 1-800-548-1632 or visit backhandent.com.
If you want the light version of the tour, head out to the Zombie Fest. Free to enter and family friendly, the event will include a DJ, food and craft vendors, jumping balloons and a Zombie Pub hosted by Spotted Dog Brewery. In groups of eight, 20-minute tours of the courthouse and jail will be offered for $5 per person. Tickets to all balloon jumps (there will be four) are $5 per person. For one last adrenaline rush, there will also be a mechanical bull ride offered for $5 per person. Tickets can be purchased at the event.
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Cassie McClure is a freelance writer and may be reached at cassiemcclure@gmail.com.
If you go
What: Zombie Fest/haunted tours of the old Doña Ana County Courthouse
When: 7 p.m.-midnight Saturday, Oct. 27
Where: Doña Ana County Courthouse, 251 W. Amador Ave.
Info: 1-800-548-1632, backhandent.com