Mayor shelves gallows plans - UPI.com MEDORA, N.D., March 27 (UPI) -- The mayor of a North Dakota town said he has withdrawn his application to build a gallows for staged hangings. Medora Mayor Douglas Ellison said Monday he is withdrawing his application submitted to the Medora Planning and Zoning Commission last week after said panel members found the idea offensive, The Dickinson (N.D.) Press reported Tuesday. "Some people were kind of upset," Ellison said. I think the people that were quick to criticize, I think just did not understand what I had envisioned. Ellison said the gallows would have had a safety harness to absorb the impact from the mock-hangings, which he said would only be staged with himself as the hanging victim. "If even a minority of visitors finds such an option offensive, I owe it to my hometown to remove the potential irritant," he said.