The Newest Halloween Scare – Rainbow Fentanyl
Every year around the middle of October, reporters start contacting me wanting to talk about rumors of contaminated Halloween treats.
That’s because I track media coverage of reported incidents of trick-or-treaters receiving razor blades in apples or pins and poison in candy bars. My data goes back to 1958, and my principal finding is simple: I can’t find any evidence that any child has ever been killed or seriously injured by a contaminated treat picked up in the course of trick-or-treating.
This often surprises people who assume that Halloween sadism is both very real and very common.
Stories about contaminated treats are best understood as contemporary legends. They’re tales we’ve all heard, that we’ve been assured are true. They warn that we live in a dangerous world filled with vil...