Posted on 09/04/2014 5:27:06 PM PDT by blueplum
...An unhinged, knife-wielding man about to jump from the top of a Bronx apartment building [August 8th] was coaxed off the ledge by a cop offering him a cigarette, authorities said.
:snip:
Cops from an NYPD Emergency Services Unit were dispatched to the scene near W. 183rd St. in University Heights and began a rapport with Paulson - who had a knife in his hand - but he refused to come down.
He wasn't menacing the cops with the knife, he just ignored them," said one witness, who asked not to be named.
After nearly an hour, cops struck up a deal with Paulson: he could trade in the knife in his hand for a cigarette...
(Excerpt) Read more at nydailynews.com ...
Check out the incredible second-down photo at the link - a picture that speaks a thousand words.
You realize that one cigarette in NYC is worth about $43, right?
Is that before or after you buy the permits to possess one?
Gave him a cigarette? Those things kill! The mayor must be livid. This cop should be suspended before he starts giving out Big Gulps.
If this guy develops lung cancer, look for the cops to be sued.
Seriously.
I’m a prison officer. I saw one of my partners talk a guy who was schizophrenic down once from cutting on himself and trashing his cell. He wouldn’t come out and we were looking at having to go in after him, which is where a lot of officers get hurt. what did my partner offer him? A 16 ounce bottle of sprite. And he came out, pretty as you please. He got his sprite, he agreed to being sedated and took his psych meds. we put him in an observation cell and all was well. No muss, no fuss, no paperwork. After it was all over we laughed our asses off. That officer is now known as “the convict whisperer”, LOL
CC
Yes indeed, San Jose PD would have shot him tout suite.
what a great anecdote, CC, thanks!
Damn Bloomberg!
Hey, I’d climb off a ledge for a cigarette.
Mel Gibson would have chosen a different route off the roof.
Like.
(I’m just gonna make my own “like” button...so if you see a “like” from me, that means I read your post and enjoyed it or learned from it. What I learned from your post is that compassion goes a long way, as evidently, so does Sprite!)
It would have been ironic, if, while sitting on a ledge, inches from death, had said no thanks to the cop, cigarettes are dangerous to my health.
We ran into a few like that in my career. Sometimes the talking did NOT work, and we had to go in on them, and you are right, sometimes people got hurt. We had running battles with medical staff, because they always wanted us to just open the door and take them on. We politely refused, and called the supervisors, to figure out a proper course of action. Sometimes the inmates were a danger to themselves, but it was not worth getting killed over, and, given their mental state, was entirely possible. We did not think 2 on 1 was fair. 20 or 30 on 1 was more fair.
You’re welcome, blue. 20 years working in a state penitentiary leaves you with a lot of stories.
CC
Yes, compassion (and the occasional sparkling beverage) does go a long way. It was the most worthwhile $1.25 he ever spent, he told me.
CC
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