PROVIDENCE — The Town Council in Burrillville, R.I., has voted against renewing the entertainment license for “The Conjuring House,” the supposedly haunted 18th-century farmhouse that attracts droves of thrill seekers, ghost hunters, and paranormal skeptics to the small, rural New England town every year.
Council members voted unanimously Monday night against issuing the annual license for the house’s parent company, Bale Fire LLC and its owner Jacqueline Nuñez, who has owned the spooky attraction behind the 2013 movie “The Conjuring” since 2022, Council President Donald Fox confirmed to the Globe on Tuesday.
Council members had various concerns about Nuñez and her ability to properly staff the house, which operates around the clock to allow guests to stay overnight for a “supernatural experience” — a component that makes the business unlike any other in town, Fox said.
“We’ve had issues with some very erratic behavior from the owner, you know, with regards to communications with administration folks, and we’ve had police incidents with the owner that, you know, have led us to take some pause as we’ve considered the business license,” Fox said.
Nuñez will not be able to conduct business at the House once her current license expires on Nov. 30, Fox said. But she can still re-apply for a new license, he said.
In a text message to the Globe on Tuesday, Nuñez wrote she intends to sue the town and the State of Rhode Island in response to Monday’s vote. She said officials committed “violations of constitutional protections.”
Nuñez has previously accused local police and others of attempting to drive her out of business in recent months, as a series of controversies surrounding her and the house have played out.
Former employees have said Nuñez owes them money, including Brian Dansereau, who has since filed a lawsuit after he said he was let go when Nuńez accused him of stealing money from the business — an accusation she said was based on a tip by the ghost of a former owner.
Jason Hawes, the Rhode Island-based star of SyFy’s “Ghost Hunters” television show, has accused Nuñez of harassing him and has said he is concerned about the safety of guests who stay at the house.
Last month, Nuñez was arrested by Burrillville police after she allegedly led police on a chase through town while driving under the influence, according to the police — accusations she has denied. Police Chief Stephen Lynch said at the time that authorities also visited the Conjuring House twice over the summer with a health care provider to check on Nuñez, who was brought to a hospital on one of those occasions.
Nuñez, told The Providence Journal in September the hospital stay was orchestrated by former employees in an attempt to take control of the house, but she declined to provide details to the Globe last month.
“Being thrown into facilities because I am complaining about crimes against me and my legitimate business does not mean that I have psychiatric issues,” Nuñez said.
The state Department of Labor and Training also temporarily issued a stop work order last month for all employees at the house besides Nuñez, after officials learned the business had not filed a current workers’ compensation insurance policy, according to Edwine “Drine” Paul, a department spokesperson. The order was ultimately lifted last week after Nuñez proved she had a policy in place, Paul said.
Since The Conjuring House opened for tours about five years ago, the home has been beneficial for Burrillville, as people from all over wander into town and spend money at restaurants and gas stations while making their way to the clapboard farmhouse out on Round Top Road, Fox said.
The town wants to see the business do well, he said.
“The things that have been happening up there have just been a little bit, you know, unusual and out of hand,” Fox said. “I wish [Nuñez], or whoever, you know, eventually takes that place over, the best. We’d love to have it running in good order and be able to, you know, promote it again so we can promote Burrillville.”
Indeed, any news of The Conjuring House, especially Monday’s vote, has spread quickly online among paranormal enthusiasts, hobbyists, and professionals, far beyond the quaint town it calls home.
Dansereau, the former employee with an ongoing lawsuit against Nuñez, told the Globe on Tuesday that while he was working there, he met people from all over the world, from Australia to Germany.
“That was the like, the coolest experience — seeing and feeling their excitement, finally landing at a place that they’ve been wanting to come to their whole life and experiencing it with them,” Dansereau said.
Satori Hawes, Hawes’ daughter and a former employee who has alleged Nuñez has threatened her and owes her money, said Tuesday “a lot of people are devastated.”
“They wanted this location to stay open because it was such an active spot for a lot of people,” she said in an interview. “So the paranormal community is definitely in talks over it, but there seems to be a general consensus that as of right now, it was probably the best decision to protect people going to that house.”
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Jason Hawes, who boasts 759,000 followers on the social media platform, wrote that the council’s decision to deny the license renewal “was the best outcome for everyone’s safety.”
Dansereau was relieved to hear the license renewal was denied on Monday night, citing his concerns about his own safety and customer safety and experiences at the house, he said.
Scott Kitlarz, of Iowa, previously told the Globe he paid $1,089 to stay overnight at the house on Oct. 21 but Nuñez asked him and his wife to leave after only a few hours, based on information she seemed to indicate was from spirits. Nuñez agreed to give Kitlarz a refund, but he had not received one as of late last month, he said.
When asked about Kitlarz’s experience, Nuñez texted that she “was alerted quickly to their intentions so I acted quickly.”
“No one with intent to hurt me or my business will get a refund,” she said. ”I will not reveal my sources that look to protect me and TCH.”
Still, with the future of the business now uncertain, the prospect that the storied property may no longer be accessible to the public is upsetting, Dansereau said.
“It was something that we all watched grow, and we all developed a relationship both with the house, the spirits within the house, and all of the guests that would come. It was an indescribable experience and privilege to be able to be part of all that at the beginning,” Dansereau said.
“But now that legacy has been sort of really, really tainted, and I think for the spirit and for the house, it just needs a rest and to recover from all of this trauma.”
This story has been updated with comments from Satori Hawes, Jason Hawes, and Brian Dansereau.
Christopher Gavin can be reached at [email protected].
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