My Neighbor’s 12 Foot Skeleton Killed the HOA President by The_Fat_Tony_

A neighbor’s twelve-foot Halloween skeleton, named Jerry, comes to life and murders the HOA president and another neighbor after the HOA tries to enforce a rule limiting decorations to October. The story is a first-person account from a man who watched the entire thing unfold from his porch.

The narrator first noticed Jerry about two years ago, when his neighbor Derek brought home a large box from Spirit Halloween. Over time, Derek dressed the skeleton for every holiday—Uncle Sam hat for the Fourth of July, a Santa hat for Christmas—and treated it with remarkable care, rushing it inside during bad weather. The skeleton was a fixture of the neighborhood, and Derek loved it.

Trouble began when a Homeowners Association formed in October. The narrator didn’t know who wanted it, but the HOA immediately began enforcing petty rules, like making him cut his azaleas because they didn’t match his house’s color scheme. Derek approached the narrator one day while cleaning Jerry and asked for support. He had read the HOA rules and learned that decorations were only allowed during October. Derek planned to keep Jerry up year-round as a protest. The narrator agreed to speak on his behalf at any HOA meeting, partly because he hated the HOA and partly because he felt pressured by Derek’s earnestness.