A California man hanged President Barack Obama in effigy,and gets a visit from some very stern Secret Service agents. Eddie Million maintains he was told that his name was going to be “on file” after the incident. The man claims his display was simply intended to be “spooky” and not intended as a threat.
The Moreno Valley resident now admits it was a bad idea to hang a president in effigy, according to the New York Daily News . The trick or treat prank featured a life-like replica of President Obama hanging from a noose in Million’s front yard, according to the Press-Enterprise .
Eddie Million had this to say about his Halloween decorating choices and the visit from the Secret Service:
“This is getting all blown out of proportion. It’s down. It’s gone. We didn’t want to hurt the president. I started thinking how bad it looked and I took it down immediately.”
The Secret Service reportedly learned of the Obama hanging in effigy display before the decoration came down. Million purchased the presidential mask off the clearance rack after Halloween last year. After neighbors complained about seeing Barack Obama hanging amid headstones and zombies, the local media arrived to cover the story.
Law enforcement officers arrived on Million’s doorstep on Monday to further investigate the matter. Secret Service agents allegedly told the southern California man that hanging the president in effigy could have been construed as a threat. If he had it to do all over again, the decorator noted he would have created such a display and did not intend to offend anyone.