10A NEWS
THE UNIVERSITY DAIRY KANSAN
THURSDAY,OCTOBER18,2007
STUDENT LIFE
Students house the Halloween spirit
Katherine Moore and Kacie McClusky, Overland Park sophomores, don't have Halloween costumes picked out yet, but their house at 308 W. 12th Lt is ready for trick-or-treating. "If they come I'll have candy, just in case." McClusky said
BY MARK DENT
mdent@kansan.com
Katherine Loeck/KANSAN
A black Ford Explorer slowed to a stop at the intersection of 12th and Tennessee streets. European techno blared out the windows, but the passengers weren't focused on the music or the road.
"Whoooo," a girl yelled from the car. "That's so cool."
Their attention shifted to the glimmering, orange light shining from the house on their right."The Halloween House."
Kacie McClusky and Katherine Moore, Overland Park sophomores, showed their love for Halloween by decking out their house with $300 worth of Halloween decorations.
So what causes the orange glimmer?
Katherine Lnack/KANSAN
Jack o'lanterns glow at the elaborately decorated home of Katherine Moore and Kacie McClusky. Overland Park parkhomophores.
Thirteen light-up jack-o'-lanterns sit on top of McClusky and Moore's roof in the middle of 22 strands of orange lights. On the deck below the roof, a spider web complete with a fake, scary spider and a light-up "Happy Halloween" sign complements an axe standing next to a door covered with bloody palm prints.
But the web, lights and jack-o'lanterns aren't the main attractions. That would be the 8-foot-tall inflatable grim reaper that holds its hand out like it's waving to the neighborhood.
The students' decorating plans started when Moore took a trip down the Halloween aisle of a store. She returned home with 13 fake jack-o-'lanterns and an idea to turn their house into Halloween heaven.
"Halloween rules." McClusky said. "I always thought of Halloween as being with your friends and just a big party. You can go all out."
By the end of September, Moore and McClusky had spent around $300 on Halloween decorations. They searched for supplies at several locations — Target, Michael's, JoAnn's and Wal-Mart.
"We pretty much figured we're in college, and we live in a pink and yellow house," McClusky said. "When we're adults in suburbs, everyone will be all conservative, and we'd never be able to do this. So we thought, 'Why not now? Let's have fun.'"
The neighbors are having fun, too. People have yelled to them about their "awesome decorations" and applauded from their cars. One time, a family stood in front of their
"They're fun," said next-door neighbor Kyle Evans. "They made Halloween the new Christmas."
house and stared at the decorations.
And this is just year one. Moore and McClusky have big plans for the future. They want to decorate for other holidays such as
Christmas, St. Patrick's Day and Easter.
"It's just going to get more excessive as the years go by," Moore said.
Of course, Halloween will still be their priority.
Edited by Kaitlyn Syrina
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CRIME
Missouri clinic accused of providing illegal abortions
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Planned Parenthood's Overland Park clinic was charged Wednesday with 107 counts, including accusations that it provided unlawful late-term abortions.
Johnson County prosecutor Phill Kline charged the clinic with 23 felony counts and 84 misdemeanor counts, according to court records. Besides 29 misdemeanor counts of providing unlawful late-term abortions, the clinic is charged with multiple counts of making a false writing, failure to maintain records and failure to determine viability.
Case documents have been sealed, according to a court order. The first hearing has been set for Nov.16.
Kline's office did not immediately comment on the charges presented.
Peter Brownlie, president and
chief executive officer of Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri, said Wednesday that the group hasn't had any contact with the district attorney's office but has heard rumors for months that Kline, an abortion opponent, was planning to file criminal charges.
As for allegations that Planned Parenthood performed illegal late-term abortions, Brownlie said its clinic doesn't perform any past the 22nd week of pregnancy.
"I've heard nothing at all about specific charges that have been filed," Brownlie said in a telephone interview. "We always provide high-quality care in full accord with state and federal law."
Attorney General Paul Morrison previously reviewed all of the allegations upon which Kline's criminal charges are based and found no wrongdoing, Morrison spokeswoman Ashley Anstaett said.
Associated Press
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