Two Georgia cops convince suicidal man to drop knife and live for his one-year-old son: 'We're not giving up on you'
HENRY COUNTY, GEORGIA: An inspiring video released by the Henry County Police Department in Georgia shows two police officers reach the residence of a suicidal man and convince him to drop his knife for the sake of his one-year-old son.
The incident unfolded some time in late July, with bodycam footage showing two officers walking into a dark home at around 2:30 pm and finding a man sitting on the floor, sobbing, with a knife pressed against his chest.
One of the deputies, which the department identified as officer Bryant, starts trying to deescalate the situation and reminds the man that he was at his house just a month ago and that he was doing good then.
"You want to go get help, I know you do," he says. "You're saying you're tired and you're sick. We need to go get you some help."
The man seems to suggest he does not want to live anymore because he will never see his one-year-old son again, something the officers insist is not the case. They then convince him to show them a picture of the infant on his phone.
"We're not giving up on you...," says the second officer. "We're not. We're here and we want to help you."
Bryant tells him that his son has not given up on him and that the young boy needs his dad, before pointing to the knife and telling him that he still had a choice and a chance at changing his life. "If you want a do-over, you can have one," he says.
"Right now, I know things aren't going right for you, man, and it's hard to think about anything other than your own..., but when you're a dad, you've got to think of your son," adds the other officer. "You've got to put your son before everything else. That's even when things are going this bad for you. I ain't trying to be hard on you man, I know things are hard enough but don't be selfish right now. Think of your boy."
He then picks up his phone from the floor and continues, "It's not lost, man, it's right there. Look. Please stop. Look at his face. He needs you. Don't do this to him. This will affect him in ways you won't even understand."
"But you can't give up. Tomorrow's a new day, man. Put this one behind you and move forward. Nobody can do that but you."
The man finally drops his knife, causing the officers to jump into action and handcuffing him so he does not harm himself. But they remove the cuffs when they get outside and hand him over to paramedics.
"We believe this video, though hard to watch, is important to learn from," said the department, explaining why they chose to share the footage. "The way our officers communicate with this young man is an example everyone should follow."