by SHARON CHANG Art Editor
A Toms River couple claims their rented house is haunted and wants to sue the landlord for their security deposit in the amount of $2,250. Their landlord is claiming that this story is a scam so that the couple can get out of their rent payment. Jose Chinchilla and his fiancee Michele Callan both agree that they hear eerie noises, lights in the house randomly flicker, doors slam on their own, and they feel sudden tugs on their bed sheets. All this paranormal activity has caused stress for the family. Chinchilla and Callan went as far as calling in investigators with the Shore Pranormal Research Society. They classified it as “paranormal”, but not haunting. It is not necessary to sue for such a silly act like this. Paranormal activity cannot be 100 percent proven in the first place. Many people have better things to do, but after people heard about all the “paranormal activity,” they actually wanted to stay there. Chinchilla and Callan are both just over-reacting. “Frankly, there is something else going on,” said David Semanchik, who is Lopez’s lawyer, to the Asbury Park Press. “{Callan] is a single mom, she has this fiance living with her. I think she is in over her head and she can’t afford the rent.” Lopez believes that the couple could not afford the rent and wanted out of the one year lease, so they made up the ghost story to get out of it. Therefore, the landlord filed a counter suit against the Toms River couple. A hearing is expecting at the end of April 2012. Usually, when people move into a new area, they are concerned about burglars, electrical problems, animals, and drafty windows. However, Chincilla and Callan are complaining about so-called “paranormal activity” that is occuring in their house. Now this is something you do not hear everyday, but I guess a new day comes with new, I mean odd, things.