Toya Griffin said her daughter first spotted the figure — a black mannequin hanging from a tree with its hands and ankles tied — while they were talking on the phone, according to the Times of Northwest Indiana.
"It's a shocking feeling to see something like that. It represents a feeling. It represents a belief. It represents a harsh time in history that affected everybody," Griffin told the Times. "If you see something like that, it brings a fear and it brings emotions."
Griffin said in a Facebook post Wednesday that she notified police, who initially told her they didn't see anything wrong with the display.
Will Ruth III, 24, said he saw Griffin’s posts about the incident and drove over to the home to see the display for himself. Ruth expressed concern that the display, which was across the street from a park and near a school, could be seen by children.
He said six or seven neighbors gathered in front of the home, talking with the homeowner or viewing the display. A Facebook live video of the decoration and a confrontation with the homeowner posted by Ruth has been viewed more than 61,000 times. Police who spoke with the homeowner said the mannequin originally had a “Jason style” mask on, which had recently been stolen, according to a press release from the Lansing Illinois Police Department. Officers said they confirmed this detail with several neighbors. Without the mask, all that remained on the head was a black plastic bag. Police remove 'offensive' Halloween decoration resembling a lynched black man.

The Orange County Sheriff's Office says a 4-year-old boy has died after being left inside a hot car, Florida.

Colt Viper .38 Special CTG #guns

Wekiva high school was briefly placed on a lockdown on Friday morning due to a report of a student with a possible weapon on campus, police say.

GPS failed #lol #losers

the moment a brutal fight erupts on a late-night train after two thugs attacked three friends on their way home from a university reunion, Leeds, UK.

Fight to the finish! Two cyclists barge into each other in desperate battle to end race and end up crashing over the finish line together. #losers

moment four tourists are set on FIRE at Instagram star Salt Bae's Istanbul restaurant

Greek tourist Alexandros Severıs, who is on his honeymoon, and Ummani tourist Mohammed Khamıs Salim were also injured.

the shocking moment a 13-year-old boy is hit by a tram after he ran in front of it and amazingly survived, Yekaterinburg, Russia

Don't mess with these corgis! #lol

footage showing gunman following rapper XXXTentacion into a motorbike store and shooting him dead in the front seat of his $150,000 BMW

new video shows moment LSU basketball player Wayde Sims was shot dead during a fight outside a Subway restaurant

Smoke billows after Marine Corps F35B crashes in South Carolina in the first such incident for troubled new $115m fighter

moment attacker brandishes a knife in a German town square after stabbing three victims and leaving one with 'life threatening injuries'

moment a businessman in Ecuador fights off SIX neighbors who tried to kidnap and extort $100,000 from him

Full video images from a security camera captured the surreal event that took place in the town of Jocay in broad daylight

Grabbing the bacon

Grabbing the bacon (with sound)