(FreedomBeacon.com)- Two police officers who dressed their mounted horses unit as ghosts for Halloween were recently accused of supporting the Ku Klux Klan. Sheriff Frank Leonbruno of the Lake County, Ohio is defending his officers after the public sparked outcry seeing the officers’ horses covered in sheets with holes cut out for the eyes and ears, according to The Post Millennial.
Some residents of the area who were offended believed that the horses were members of the equestrian Klansmen of the KKK.
“That was poor execution for a ghost,” said one resident, adding, “You go back and look at pictures of the Ku Klux Klan, it’s like the exact replica of what the horses looked like.”
Leonbruno reportedly said of his local cops that they thought, “what a great idea to have big ghosts going down the street,” saying that he believed the pumpkin lights around the horses were enough to make it clear the animals were just dressed for Halloween.
“As the horses went down the street they were lit up for Halloween,” he said, adding that the kids in the community enjoyed the costumes.
“To tell you the truth the community loved it, kids said they were great ghost horses,” Leonbruno said. “I’m sorry that perception was there. It was never our intention to do that.”
The sheriff said that pictures of the horses were posted on the department’s social media page, but after a few negative comments, the post was removed.
Another resident expressed her disapproval of the decision, questioning how anyone at the department would not see the resemblance to the racist group.
“Is there nobody on staff that is like, ‘This is not a good idea?’” said Katelynn Gurbach. “A sheriff’s office should be out there protecting people, and if I saw that on my street, I would be terrified.”
