Police Officers encounter all kinds of situations in during the course of duty and many times, as recent events have tragically highlighted, split second decisions can mean the difference between life and death.
It’s a difficult job, dealing with everything from domestic disputes, out of control drunks, violent criminals, car chases, and sometimes even desperate individuals who are contemplating suicide.
That’s an incredibly broad range of skills to possess, but Master Patrol Officer Michael Blackmore proved he was up to the challenge when he came across a man who appeared to be moments away from fatally jumping off a bridge.
The State reported it was 3:45 a.m. when Officer Blackmore arrived on the scene and began talking to the man. One wrong word and it could cause further agitation and disaster.
Blackmore began by reminding the man of all the blessings in his life.
“You got a place to stay at. You got a good job. You got friends. You probably just having a bad night, I have bad nights too sometimes.”
Blackmore said he wanted to take the distraught man’s mind off of his problems. So he started talking some football.
“You like watching football? Who’s your team? NFL, the Redskins?”
After about 8 minutes of conversation, Blackmore felt comfortable enough to move a little closer. In a tense several moments all caught on camera, Blackmore moves in to grab his arm.
Thankfully, it all worked out. Incredibly, this is one of a series of similar incidents in which officers, including Blackmore himself, were able to successfully use football talk to save a man’s life.
You can watch the whole ordeal below: