Fla. police chief says gruesome Halloween display was meant to be ‘educational’
MIAMI — The Coral Gables Police Department made an effort to have a bit of Halloween fun this year, but the gory attempt was met with more gasps than giggles.
The department set up a fake “crime scene” on Miracle Mile, which featured yellow tape and what looks like a body covered in a tarp.
The scene also prominently displayed a Coral Gables police SUV, with a limbless mannequin in a t-shirt and face gaiter tucked under the front right tire.
The scene was set up for the city’s annual “Halloween on the Mile” event Saturday. It was taken down when the event ended at 8 p.m., according to a city spokeswoman.
In a statement, Coral Gables Police Chief Edward Hudak Jr. said the scene was meant to educate, not disturb.
“It’s an educational display to underscore pedestrian safety in the spirit of Halloween,” he said.
The “Halloween on the Mile” was put on by the city’s Business Improvement District, and featured live storytelling, arts and crafts and costume contests for children and dogs.
A photo of the set-up was first posted on Twitter by David Quiñones, an executive at a Coral Gables public relations firm.
More than 60 Twitter users weighed in, expressing shock — many tweeted “WTF” or “yikes” — and pointing out the seriousness of pedestrian safety. One recalled a particularly horrific event, where a Miami Beach police officer in an SUV ran over two French tourists in 2003, killing one of them and crushing the other.
“Guys the Coral Gables Police had a Halloween installation on Miracle Mile where the premise was, I guess, they ran some people over? Pretty chilling,” Quiñones wrote.