🎃 Seasonal decor wars | Morning Newsletter

Saturday is here, with sunny skies and a high near 83.

As the seasonal creep visibly accelerates, some are unsure how to cope. Inquirer staffers discuss a reader’s issue with a neighbor’s “early” Halloween display in the heat of summer.

Plus, we have news on a possibly significant discovery in the sprawling investigation into Raymond Horsch’s home in Olney, a persistent tire-dumping problem, and our report card for this week in Philly stories.

— Paola Pérez (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)

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What you should know today

• A federal appeals court in Philadelphia ruled that a policy mandating detention without a hearing for nearly all undocumented immigrants is unlawful. It has immediate local impact.
• Police are investigating a fatal hit-and-run in Olney that took place minutes after an officer left the victim lying in a bike lane.
• Sources told The Inquirer that Philadelphia police have recovered video that they believe shows the late pornographer Raymond “R.C.” Horsch killing a woman on camera. At least five missing women are now linked to the property where Horsch lived for decades with his son, Eugene.
• A Delaware psychiatrist who testified in the nationally watched murder trial of Lindsay Clancy in Massachusetts resigned his position with Nemours Children’s Health.
• Illegal dumpers repeatedly haul tires into Fairmount Park with U-Haul trucks, frustrating park-goers and the city as it engages in whack-a-mole.
• Controversial apartments slated for the site of Manayunk’s PHS beer garden have been delayed. Neighborhood backlash against the project has been intense.
• Jose Pistola’s Center City location abruptly closed this week. It’s the second longtime bar to close on the strip in a year.
• New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill signed legislation to permanently allow the sale and delivery of to-go alcoholic beverages.
• Philly-area AMC Theatres will screen two Dolly Parton movies through Wednesday.
• Between bidding a tearful goodbye to the “Queen of Country” and our restaurants making national lists again, catch up on all the good, bad, and weird from recent stories out of Philly.

The seasonal creep Grinch

This week’s question is: My neighbor has started decorating for Halloween. There are six skeletons in the yard, jack-o-lanterns hanging around the whole front of the house, fake tombstones that have punny names (I.P. Freely), and I know a lot more is coming. Halloween is more than two months away and it’s still 90 degrees outside. Is it too early for this or am I being a Grumpy Gus?

Inquirer columnists Stephanie Farr and Elizabeth Wellington joined forces for this one, touching on everything from First Amendment rights to the philosophical motivation behind putting up decorations in the first place.

Farr, who is already looking forward to Christmas, said she has a neighbor with a 12-foot skeleton up year-round, and wondered if living right next door would make her feel compelled to say something. Wellington, who can relate to feeling annoyed by the autumn-rushers, suggests a simple solution: acceptance. “I think we McGrinches have to grin and bear it,” she said, suggesting self-care tactics to deal with it.

Read their full conversation here. Need advice, or want to share your thoughts? We want to hear it. Email us here.

One viewpoint

In this week’s Shackamaxon, Inquirer columnist Daniel Pearson unpacks a judge’s move to impose supervision on the beleaguered Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office and its processing of deeds after property auctions.

“While it is good to see someone holding the sheriff accountable for once, a temporary babysitter is only a partial solution,” Pearson writes. “The office should be abolished.”

Read on for his perspective on the department’s years of dysfunction, along with other takes on data center confusion and the city’s most recent property valuations.

❓Pop quiz

Restaurateur Bruce Cooper will close his landmark restaurant Jake’s this fall after nearly 40 years in Manayunk.

What was the name “Jake’s” a reference to?

A) Cooper’s dog

B) Cooper’s then-wife Helena’s nickname

C) Cooper’s late great-great-grandfather

D) All of the above

Think you know? Check your answer.

🧩 Unscramble the anagram

Hint: Downingtown-based brewery

CROWING BREVITY

Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here.

Cheers to Rosemary Farley, who correctly guessed Friday’s answer: Center City. Crews for the HBO crime drama Task were spotted filming in the neighborhood on Tuesday, and have been shooting around the region all summer.

We were there

How hard can it be to climb the Manayunk Wall?

With the highly anticipated revival of the Philadelphia Cycling Classic this weekend, we asked a former pro (Carlos Rogers) and a complete novice (sports reporter Ariel Simpson) to make an attempt at the most iconic ascent in American cycling.

See how they fared along the steep incline.

Somewhere on the internet in Philly

🧹 AlleyGators, a citywide cleaning program, seems to be going well. Have you filed a request and seen any difference in your neighborhood? Let us know.

🧀 We love superlatives. Someone is on the hunt for the best cheesesteak egg rolls in Philly. Another is claiming the finest bathroom, which appears to be at 12 Steps Down. My favorite comment: “this is a dark souls toilet but i mean that as a compliment.”

🚴 Like many others, John Carpenter and Julia Heberle of Roxborough are thrilled that the Cycling Classic is returning this year. They’ve been fans of the race since they moved to the area in 1988, and plan to do all they can to make this year feel like a party.

👋🏽 Have a good one. I’ll catch up with you again tomorrow.

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