Police Officer Sees Kids On Knees, With Hands Behind Heads, And Takes Swift Action

When a Tennessee police officer drove by a group of kids on their knees begging for their lives, it left a deep, lasting impression on him (video below).

On April 7, Memphis Police Department (MPD) Officer Rico Donald drove past some children playing in their Whitehaven yard. They knelt on the ground and put their hands over their heads, as if they thought they were being arrested and begging for their lives.

Donald wanted the children to know that they shouldn’t be afraid around him when he’s in uniform.

“If they keep that scared mentality when they’re young, as they get older it’s going to be, ‘Ok, I’m not scared, but I don’t like the police any more,'” he told WREG News.

Donald and his partner stopped their patrol vehicle to talk to the kids and explain that policemen are there to protect them.

“I was just trying to assure them, you don’t have to be scared of us, we’re your friends,” Donald told WATN News. “No matter what you might see, you can depend on us.”

The officer says that he tries to tackle the bad reputation of police officers whenever the occasion arises.

“I think we all know about what’s going on in society with police and especially the black community,” Donald explained to WREG News.

Donald also tried to get to know the children better.

“The youngest one wanted to be a police officer,” Donald said of the children. “The second one wanted to do sports, and the young lady, she wanted to be a teacher.”

After their conversation, the officer played football with the kids, in an attempt to show them cops were not to be feared.

“It made them feel so good,” Jamie Wilson, the mother of the kids, told WATN News. “It made them feel great that he stopped and talked to them.”

“Kids cry when the police officers come because they’re scared — it’s like we replaced the boogeyman,” said Donald. “I need you to feel that if you need me, if no one else comes, I’m going to come. I want them to feel comfortable.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=De9bBVL8Lho

Sources: WREG News, WATN News / Photo credit: WREG News via Madelyn Molly/YouTube