Northern Colorado has been dealing with clown threats for weeks now, starting with a threat against a Greeley high school.  There was also a clown sighting in Greeley where a resident took a chilling image of a creepy clown in a beat-up vehicle and after that, Poudre High School in Fort Collins was threatened via Facebook.

Despite the creepy images and terrifying threats happening all over the country, local police urges us to be smart and to not overreact when we see a clown.

Jerry Schiager from the Fort Collins Police Department told us that social media is to blame for the craze taking off so quickly, and while it's easy to promote hysteria, Colorado residents should be careful when deciding to take action against clowns.

"You can't just assume that someone dressed as a clown is going to hurt you," Schiager said.  This is especially true with Halloween coming around the corner, since the possibility of innocent people dressing as clowns becomes much greater.

"The key is-- you have to look at all the evidence and make a decision that your safety is in danger before defending yourself," he noted.

Our friends in Wyoming with 106.3 Cowboy Country also released a list of what NOT to do when you see a clown, which included the following tips:

"1. DON’T shoot them – Shooting a clown does not meet the legal justification for self-defense.

2. DON’T shoot at them – Trying to scare a clown by shooting at them is against the law. You could wind in jail and you might accidentally shoot someone else.

They do encourage taking a picture and letting your local police department know, which are the safest steps to take when someone isn't inciting violence towards you. (Read the full list here.)

 

Basically, before you shoot a clown, make sure you aren't breaking the law before claiming self-defense...but always stay on your guard!

 

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