Believe it or not, our country is facing a clown epidemic. Clowns have been spotted all over the United States for the past few weeks, starting out in South Carolina. It began as clowns jumping out of dark places and scaring people, but now it is something much more serious.

Clowns are walking around the nation with knives, baseball bats, and guns. They are standing in areas that are hard for them to be seen waiting for the right time to jump out. While many were hoaxes, a handful of the incidents resulted in arrests.

According to Vincent Jacobson, the North Park Mall police officer, “The clown epidemic is something that needs to be taken seriously. People have gotten hurt and many ‘clowns’ have been taken to jail. Please be smart and go outside in groups.”

There have not yet been any deaths or serious injuries. It could possibly lead to that especially if alcohol and drugs are involved. The epidemic will most likely burn out, but the question is, when?

Jake Docherty, sophomore, reported, “When I went haunted housing, I heard a lot of talk about clowns. People were scared there were clowns who wanted to hurt them inside. This is making workers at haunted houses, whom are dressed as clowns, scared for their lives. No one knows if someone will possibly bring anything to hurt the clown workers inside.”

People at haunted houses are doing their jobs. They don’t have the intent to hurt anybody; they’re just there to give you an adrenaline rush.  

If you see a clown on the streets, you are asked to call 911 and report when and where you saw the clown. Jacobson stated, “We want to figure this out. If you suspect anyone being a clown that’s trying to hurt people, we ask that you call 911 immediately. This is the only way we can get this under control.