When he was 2 years old, Luke Ruehlman told his parents that he was once a woman named Pamela. As his mother, Erika, explained to local news, Luke began speaking about Pamela frequently, but the family didn't know anyone by that name. Eventually, she asked Luke who Pamela was.
Erika explained, "He turned to me and said, 'Well, I was.' [He said] 'Well, I used to be, but I died and I went up to heaven.'"
He continued, "'I saw God and then eventually, God pushed me back down and I was a baby and you named me Luke.'"
Luke continued to speak about Pamela, often adding details that surprised his family.
Erika shared, "He used to say, ‘When I was a girl, I had black hair’ or he would say, ‘I used to have earrings like that when I was a girl.'"
Eventually, Erika decided to try to investigate whether or not this Pamela existed.
Erika learned about Pam Robinson, who was one of 19 people who died in a fire at a hotel in Chicago in 1993. Armed with this information, Erika took her son on the TV show The Ghost Inside My Child to have his claims investigated further.
While being filmed for the show, Luke was asked to identify Pamela from a series of photos of women. He's shown choosing the right photo without thinking twice.
Erika contacted Pamela's family and found out that she shared an interest in Stevie Wonder, just like Luke.
Pam Robinson's family has not commented on Luke or the possibilities that his mother has presented. The fire that killed Pam is still remembered as one of the deadliest in Chicago's history.
