Neighbours upset over fake testicles in woman's garden

A neighbourly dispute in western New York that has allegedly been going on for years intensified in the past few weeks. Shirley Draper, of Moulton Ave., Tonawanda, placed a set of fake testicles in her back yard in June — right where her next door neighbours, the Dilibertos, could see them.

Peter Diliberto called the Town of Tonawanda Police Department on June 27 to complain about the fake testicles, but the police told him they could not handle the issue — as displaying the fake testicles is not considered illegal. Lt. Nick Bado said the department has had similar issues before with fake testicles on the backs of vehicles, and that they have contacted attorneys to inquire about the legality of such inappropriate objects.



“They specifically said that they aren’t considered illegal on vehicles because they are not obscene by the definition of the word,” Bado said. “In this case, it was private property as well—so there definitely aren’t any legal grounds.” Bado said that he assumes the Dilibertos were upset with the response from the police. So they responded by taking a picture of Draper’s fake testicles and putting up a laminate sign of the picture in their yard, facing Draper’s property.

“I assume it was a message of ‘well now, you have to look at them, too,’” Bado said. On July 4, Draper leaned over the fence separating her yard from the Dilibertos’ and tore down the picture, ripping it. According to Bado, Draper wasn’t arrested, but she will be served criminal summons for fourth-degree criminal mischief and trespassing.