Halloween Candy, Drink Safety

Halloween is a time for spooky fun – but it’s also a time to
be a bit more aware of your surroundings. North Fond du Lac Police Chief Darren
Pautsch recommends checking candy before kids can eat it for more reasons than
just the scary thought of someone tampering with the treats.

Pautsch points out that “there
are a lot more food allergies now, there are a lot more ingredients in candies
and treats that maybe your kid shouldn’t be eating or having, so it gives
parents an opportunity to look for those kinds of dangers. You get to look for
any spoiled candy. Just encourage your kid to not eat that stuff before they
get home and do carefully go through and inspect it. You never know what you’re
going to find.”

He also recommends to “encourage your kids not to eat anything before they get home. And parents, we do encourage you to go through the candy and take a look at it before you allow them to eat anything. I’m not going to sit here and say there has never been a case of candy being tampered with, because we all know there have been.”

Pautsch also addressed another issue that isn’t often
talked about, and should still be mentioned. He reminds parents and adults that “walking
down the street with open intoxicants, whether it’s a can of beer, whether it’s
a mixer they made at home before they went out on the street, I need to remind
parents and other adults – that is not legal. You can’t walk out on the street
or sidewalks today with an open intoxicant, you’re not going to be able to do
it tomorrow, and Trick-or-Treat isn’t an exception, you don’t get to walk down
the street with an open intoxicant.”

Pautsch tells us the open intoxicants issue isn’t extremely
prevalent, but just like bad candy being handed out – it does happen. He tells
parents if they are going to have a drink, to wait until they are home from Trick
or Treating.