![Trendy Costumes On Sale As Halloween Approaches Halloween masks are offered for sale at Fantasy Costumes on Oct. 19, 2016 in Chicago, Illinois.](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/clown-ban-mississippi.jpg?quality=85&w=2400)
By Melissa Chan
A county in Mississippi has made it temporarily illegal for anybody to dress up as a clown in public—at least until Halloween is over.
Officials in Kemper County have reacted to the creepy clown craze that has taken over most of the U.S. and other parts of the world by passing an ordinance Monday that makes it unlawful for people to wear a clown costume, a clown mask or even clown makeup in public, the Kemper County Messenger reports.
“It has really gotten out of hand,” Kemper County Board President Johnny Whitsett said of the sweeping phenomenon, according to the newspaper.
Violators face a $150 fine until the ordinance is no longer in effect Nov. 1.
More Must-Reads from TIME
- Eyewitness Accounts From the Trump Rally Shooting
- Politicians Condemn Trump Rally Shooting: ‘No Place for Political Violence in Our Democracy’
- From 2022: How the Threat of Political Violence Is Transforming America
- ‘We’re Living in a Nightmare:’ Inside the Health Crisis of a Texas Bitcoin Town
- Remembering Shannen Doherty , the Quintessential Gen X Girl
- How Often Do You Really Need to Wash Your Sheets?
- Welcome to the Noah Lyles Olympics
- Get Our Paris Olympics Newsletter in Your Inbox
Contact us at letters@time.com