Two ghosts of revenge driven former students come back with vengeance

Cassie Rossel
The ghosts of Jimmy Black and Betty Hayes terrorize the campuses of IVC and Saddleback.

The ghosts of Jimmy Black and Betty Hayes terrorize the campuses of IVC and Saddleback.

The ghosts of Jimmy Black and Betty Hayes have come back once more to haunt the students and faculty of Saddleback College and Irvine Valley College.

The ghosts have been spotted by several students and faculty members at various locations on the campuses of both colleges.

This isn’t the first time that Black and Hayes have been seen haunting the campuses of Saddleback and IVC. The pair have been know to plan their appearances in the weeks preceding the night of their deaths.

Next Monday, Oct. 29, marks the 15-year anniversary of Black’s and Hayes’ untimely deaths.

It seemed like any other day for both Black and Hayes on Oct. 29, 1996, but the tragedy that struck them on that horrific night would never be forgotten.

Black was walking out of his night math class, which ended at 9 p.m., and into the parking lot at Saddleback when he was suddenly struck by a car. Black was killed instantly.

Within the same hour, Hayes was dismissed from her English night class at IVC, and she too was struck by a vehicle while walking to her car. Hayes was also killed instantly.

According to police records, there were no witnesses at either scene at the time of the incident, and there was no one to identify the vehicle or the person driving it at the time of each death.

Hayes and Black were only 20 years old when they passed away.

There is no proof that ties the two murders together, but police records suggest that the two deaths were caused by the same person.

No evidence ever turned up to lead police to the perpetrators of the murders, and justice has yet to be served.

One year to the date of Black and Hayes’ deaths, the first ghost sightings and strange acts of vandalism were reported at both IVC and Saddleback.

Paula Hemmingway, an economics instructor at Saddleback, recalls the first time she saw the ghosts of Black and Hayes.

“I was walking out of my last class for the night when I saw two figures coming towards me,” Hemmingway said. “Out of nowhere, they came at me and started throwing me up against the wall. All they kept saying to me was ‘Where is he? Where is he?'”

The words “Jimmy and Betty are out to get you” were written on several walls of various buildings throughout the campuses of each college, which led officials to believe that the strange paranormal activity was due to the ghosts of Black and Hayes.

Four years later, in the week preceding the night of Black and Hayes’ deaths, sightings and strange writings were reported once again.

Tom Stone, an IVC alumni, reported an event similar to Hemmingway’s story.

The last sightings of the ghosts were in October of 2006.

Now, in the eve of the 15-year anniversary of Black and Hayes’ deaths, more than 30 ghost sightings or suspicions of paranormal activity have been reported at Saddleback and IVC.

Helen Taft, 19, business, is a student at Saddleback who was threatened by the ghosts on Tuesday in broad daylight.

“The ghosts appeared to be looking for someone when I came across them,” Taft said. “I stayed very quiet, so that they wouldn’t do anything to me, but when they saw me they darted in my direction and caught me in a choke-hold. They told me to tell everyone that they want justice, and they want it now.”

Taft’s story and several others have been reported to the police. The Hayes and Black cases have now been reopened and officials are commanding a full on investigation to hunt down the driver of the vehicles who killed Black and Hayes on the night of Oct. 29, 1996.

“It seems like the only way to stop these hauntings is by bringing Black and Hayes’ murderer to justice, the perpetrator will be given the punishment he or she deserves,” said Paul Hamlet, Chief of Paranormal Activity at the Orange County Sheriff Department.

To report any recent sightings or paranormal occurrences, contact the campus police immediately.

 

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