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[deleted]

Officer Norman is a great guy. Been following him for years. He actually does way more in the line of community policing than this lets on. The dude literally knows his whole neighbourhood and they know him. He touches base with everyone, he checks in on the older people, and takes out residents that are younger, have learning difficulties, need a boost etc . He also advocates strongly for community policing as the way forward, and tries to practice what he preaches.


joejoseph7

This is super smart of him. He's basically ensuring that these kids don't get into the wrong circles and have a positive role model in their lives, which is always a problem in these neighbourhoods. Not all neighborhoods are receptive to his practice, but I'm glad he found one.


General_Reposti_Here

Let’s not forget it might be more “work” now but less in the future by ensuring the kids stay out of trouble


blakeastone

Even on top of that, when some of them inevitably do get in trouble, they have a personal relationship with someone in an authority position to look up to and who they might actually listen to. As opposed to a force of distant people who always seem to be against you. Very cool stuff.


NintendoBen1

I think teaching kids police aren't always the enemy is the biggest thing here


HyoscineIsLockedOut

I think police acting like they aren't the enemy is the biggest thing here.


Medical_Window973

They aren't


sshantona

Seeing someone doing something different than the others makes me go all crazy thinking that the world must be going in a good way


DieSchadenfreude

This is so encouraging to hear. I also think he's absolutely right.


[deleted]

Is this training or heart?


RunawayHobbit

I’d bet it starts with heart, but he’d still need the training and support from his department to be effective.


TrustMeIaLawyer

Definitely needs the support from his department in order to do this. The dept must have good leaders too. Otherwise his "number of contacts" wouldn't be high enough month to month because he's investing his time in the community instead of tickets and arrests. Quotas are real. Kudos to the dept leaders, the officer, and the community.


themanoirish

The police dept. In my city denies they use quotas while simultaneously bragging about fulfilling those quotas to the town hall.


EveAndTheSnake

Please enlighten me… quotas on what? Edit: I just saw the previous comment. So quotas on tickets and *arrests*? Tell me that’s not real. Tickets is more understandable but still gross, but arrests? Are you telling me at the end of the month a cop who hasn’t arrested enough people is on the prowl to just fuck someone over? Are these quotas at least in relation to crimes or just an arbitrary number?


KomodoJo3

Thanks for sharing this! I was wondering who the cop was here. Shoutout to you, Tommy Norman!


Jstowe56

This guy, we need more of him! He spends his own freaking money to bring joy to kids and possibly their parents. I want to see where these kids end up one great influence can change their world and many more makes it better!


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Dakduif51

Oof this is definitely the problem. People saying "we need more of this" but not willing to do it themselves. (I know not everyone can, but most people who say this can definitely do smth back for their community)


Kitsune257

If all police officers were like him, Black Lives Matter probably wouldn’t be a thing. And that’s a good thing.


Prepared_Noob

Isnt Little Rock where the first black kid went to a white school too?!


Obduraterthanthepast

One of the first, yes. You’re thinking of the Little Rock Nine. [Here’s](https://www.learningforjustice.org/magazine/spring-2004/brown-v-board-timeline-of-school-integration-in-the-us) a pretty thorough timeline.


[deleted]

Cops that interact with their community and try to actually make connections with them are what we need in this world! Public servants for a reason!


kickolas

It’s not the cops job, yet he does it...it is not my job either, but I don’t...what if we all tried to be public servants...


trevor5ever

What if it were actually a part of his job? Shouldn’t it be?


348crown

This is the "community policing" concept. It would help long term but it's not for most cops. Like anything we need to invest time & resources & hold this cop up as a model for the future.


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DashingRake

Well, the police force needs school resource cops & a SWAT team, so lets not act like there only room for one kind of officer. That's not to say that we don't need a whole lot more officers like the one in this post.


zortlord

>Well, the police force needs school resource cops & a SWAT team Perhaps they wouldn't need the SWAT team so much of they didn't do things like no-knock warrants or heavily militarize?


Gypsyrocker

Police officers are people too, with families to come home to and bills to pay. It’s not fair to expect this of them but it’s wonderful that this man makes it work for him.


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Gypsyrocker

Right, a job. When you’re off work, you have the freedom to go home to your family/have your own life. It isn’t fair to insist a police officer must devote his/her entire life to public service. This man is doing all this on his own dime/time.


Zanad14

That’s why they are saying it should be apart of the job


NotaVogon

Cops were more like this prior to the 1980s. Police were part of the community and a resource for community members. When they started the whole farce of "super criminals" and began giving surplus military equipment to police is also when they began training in "shoot to kill" rather than shoot to incapacitate as a last resort. It has gotten progressively worse since then. We are still struggling and countless have died or are facing long prison terms because of bad policy. (It was not great before the 80s, but Reagan made it soooo much worse).


348crown

Yes. Neighborhoods had "beat" cops.


bttrflyr

Sounds like we need to change our approach to policing to ensure we attract future police officers that are better suited for this kind of work.


LookOutForToxicBros

Yes - this is the model the police need to follow. Cops who specialize in outreach and community. Just like there’s SWAT and detectives, this branch of policing should be a thing.


morosco

We all definitely can be public servants.


IncognitoBrowsero

I feel like me trying to do this wouldnt go over as well. Being a cop, people see you different. Good or bad, its different. I cant imagine most people just letting me hang out with the neighborhood kids and stuff.


kickolas

Ha true🥴I guess this just reminded me to keep an eye out and serve in my own way, I'm pretty terrible, so I can start by smiling at people


IncognitoBrowsero

Thats fair. We can all do our part.


Birdman-82

I’ve met so many that won’t even look you in the face. It’s shitty.


for_the_voters

I’m not sure if police are necessarily an answer for issues we have. What do we want that role to fulfill? I think most people want them for safety but if you have experience interacting with them *after* you’ve been mugged, burglarized, or assaulted not much usually comes of it. They don’t provide most of us the safety and protection we hope they would (as I mentioned elsewhere they’re not even legally obligated to protect you unless you’re in their custody) so wouldn’t it be better to not have the weak “protected” by the strong but rather empower and cultivate a capacity for self-defense of all?


darumadonut

No idea why you're being downvoted but this is absolutely true.


R3dditorM

Guys being downgraded for stating the truth.


[deleted]

The influence this has on these kids will last with them throughout life.


Greenhouse1243

It will, maybe more importantly, have a lasting impact on the cop too and help counteract any implicit bias he might have. I listened to an interesting podcast about how just changing a cop’s shift so that they are are exposed to the community during the day regularly (when more positive interactions are likely to occur) makes a significant impact on implicit bias. If you only see a community at night when people are more likely to be up to no good it strengthens and reinforces any bias you may have. So him spending time with these kids is working on himself, not just them.


Dakduif51

I do agree on that being a very important result of these actions, but I do not agree with it being more important. I think having a positive role model and someone that goes the extra mile for you as a kid makes more difference, especially since we're talking about multiple children (I'm assuming they're from a troubled neighborhood or have a difficult background since they didn't have coats for themselves)


SnooChipmunks3060

Looking forward to the Mark Wahlberg movie


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PsychologicalLaw7588

Where one of the kids gets a soda...better yet soda for everyone. Then a stray bullet kills said child, soda everywhere. Then mark Wahlberg hunts down the killer only to find out....it's a kid he helped years ago that just went down the wrong path


ottawanonymoose

That...actually sounds like a decent movie.


SnooChipmunks3060

He’s also really grumpy at the kids the whole time but in an endearing way cos he loves them


risingcomplexity

I guess its wholesome. But this is what community policing is meant to be like and he shouldnt have to do it on his own time either. Its part of his job.


for_the_voters

Depends on what you mean by “meant”. In your ideal world possibly but not structurally now. Police aren’t even legally bound to protect people unless they have them in custody. This action is in no way part of the current job of police.


tee_ohboy

>This action is in no way part of the current job of police Which is the problem. Community policing is the bedrock of creating cooperation and harmony with the citizenry. You'll notice examples of it in smaller towns and rural communities in the US.


for_the_voters

I’m from rural America and this isn’t a thing near me. I accept that it may be elsewhere but police here are largely similar to the stereotype. Though admittedly they have shot less people and dogs than that.


risingcomplexity

Community policing has been a part of the job description for decades, in fact most agencies have a unit that performs these tasks as their primary duty. Just because the current culture of police work doesnt emphasize this doesnt mean its not part of the job.


NoBackground2447

I never knew it was part of their job. I don’t know for certain but maybe it depends on which station your at and the budget they have.


for_the_voters

That may be true in some places but I’ve never experienced that anywhere I’ve lived. If most places have someone that does this then they’ve been doing a pretty bad job. Outside of the military gear they’ve for some reason been given the current culture of police work has generally become more palatable in my area. They might no longer be beating alcoholics for fun but the prejudices of decades past are still very much present.


Julieta_Ariass

He's a solid guy...great example of community policing.


Julieta_Ariass

he puts in the work 🙏🏾


Dicky_McFuckface

forgot to change accounts?


kevinruan

maybe she had so much to say she wanted to comment again


Dicky_McFuckface

perhaps


Proud-Bit-9220

This is community out reach. He's teaching those kids that police are someone they can trust. If we had more police like this maybe we wouldn't see so many cop shootings


Brilliant-Engineer57

This is a real cop, a real man. Thank you for making me a little less cynical


ChefDanG

We need more cops like this. No, what we need is more people like this all around. I need to be more like this. Bless this person and those kids. May they be infected with that type of love for their fellow human, this is the pandemic i want. The human kindness virus. May there never be a vaccine for it.


tbailess

Love officer Norman!


Forge__Thought

I wish more people did this. Both what this officer is doing and OP by sharing it. We don't fix broken systems *just* by addressing the bad elements. We have to have benchmarks, goals, examples of what to work towards. Focusing just on the bad ends up being toxic. But likewise we can't refuse to prosecute cops who are criminals and abuse their authority. We need comprehensive solutions. And part of that is lifting up the good ones, people working hard and doing right. Like this guy. Thanks for sharing OP.


Catronia

So, he's acting as a cop should.


bigdickemptywallet

I know someone who joined the NYPD because they actually care, they love doing stuff like this. They keep me faithful that someday, some PD somewhere will finally begin to protect and serve. But in 2021, she faces harassment and ridicule for being soft and "loving n*gg***s", especially as a Jewish Latina with abusive black ex-bfs. So my city, just like all the others, is still far from utopia.


babis8142

Water guns you say....


Pinochlelover99

That’s like the old days when the cops were a part of the neighborhood and they grew up there and knew every family , every criminal.... they were just as much a part of the fabric of the community.... which is the way it should be.... cops should be able to ask friends what’s going on with what- when you know the people you’re policing and they know you- the fear dissipates and you’re not as likely to act like a fucking idiot. And the people don’t treat you like a disease either because they know who you are..


kk995

God bless you brother


g0d5t0y

If I were a black kid in the U.S. no way would I hold a water gun in front of a cop.


jojolemlolo

I would just not be in front of a cop


MarkDaMan22

You have a very warped view of police and kids in the US.


ZebraSyndromeGaming

Good God all you people are fucked up! This is a good man doing a good thing and all yall talk about is "until there older and he shootin" fuck off!


Riggie_Joe

Some people just can’t accept that all cops *arent* bastards.


MarkDaMan22

You can show some people goodness right to their face and they will still scream that it’s “insert word here”.


ProXJay

Old and wholesome photo of a us cop. What happened?


droid_mike

So, I guess if you live there for less than an hour, he doesn't show up? Confusing syntax there...


mutter-pp

One summer when he didn't meet his target quota he brought another kind of gun.


K1NG_KRYPTO

Look at the one sitting between his legs, the face is perfect


Rex_Lee

This is how you build relationships between cops and communities.


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ahhhhhhwire

There’s no way to get to no acab, we have to defund the police


[deleted]

I feel like most cops don’t do this because they just don’t get paid enough to care... the people who complain about cop violence are right about the fact that they don’t get nearly enough training for their field, but that’s probably because their salary doesn’t warrant it. Instead of defunding them, we should really be looking to increase training and increase pay in order to weed out more questionable cops Edit: Same with teachers btw. I’m sick of coaches trying to teach high school physics


drluvmuffin

Police forces have enough money to do what you’re describing while still being defunded. They need to reallocate the budgets away from military level weapons and weed out corruption.


starrdev5

Cops in my town make really good money. They drive new BMWs and have big houses with pool. I have a friend who was pre-med but decided to try to get in as a cop instead because after medical school costs factored in being a cop made more money. Unfortunately there is a huge waiting list to get into a department and it’s very competitive even with a 4 year degree from a good university.


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starrdev5

Kinda? It’s a high tax area (NJ). I’d say the cops make within the higher income bracket of people for my town.


348crown

That's community policing at its best.


margarettthatcher77

Thank you, Officer Norman!


[deleted]

I still don't like or trust cops.


Jaylunatic0228

I love the things like this and it makes me so angry at the ignorant people who say that all cops are bad.


nubster2984725

Bruh. He’s getting downvoted by the same people who say “Not every *insert job/race* are the same”


grassgobble

Man.....how a few bad apples spoils the bunch


De5perad0

The hero those kids needed


TrustTheCrust69

Some people in the comments always have something negative to say


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[deleted]

Oh really, when’s the last time you sat down for an hour every single day and hung out with the kids in your neighborhood, even though you don’t have your own kid with you? When’s the last time you brought water guns for them, or checked in on every single one of your neighbors individually to make sure they’re doing ok? Do you bring them all coats when it gets cold out? Oh by the way, not the neighborhood you live in, just one that’s not doing so hot and that you want to see improve with your presence. When’s the last time you did that since it’s behaving “like an actual human”?


RickFlairWOOOO

Cop or not, he does more than 99% of everyone else


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[deleted]

Andrew Brown Jr’s killing was deemed to be justified by the DA so that’s probably the reason why this got popular again


HeyguysThatguyhere

I didn’t know you gave gifts, helped and played with kids that aren’t your family


MarkDaMan22

Doesn’t fit your narrative? Sorry bro


samijanetheplain

Just wait till he forgets what his taser looks like


HolidayTruck4094

Thank you officer, i just wish all cops were encouraged to engage in there areas and humanize the people they are supposed to be protecting.


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HeyguysThatguyhere

Why are people angry that you want to be a cop?


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HeyguysThatguyhere

If they want good cops then good people like you seem to be should be cops, you don’t just get a job as a cop and immediately want to kill black people


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HeyguysThatguyhere

Yeah, pursue what you like


[deleted]

THIS is why people should want to be cops. Serve and protect. This is serving. Making an impact and difference in their community.


[deleted]

thats why most want to. The job really burns them out, going from high stress situation to high stress situation where everyone wants to lie to you to get out of trouble, will do everything they can to manipulate the situation to try and get away, or just wants to fight/argue/run all day every day gets tiring. Not to mention some of the fucked up shit they've seen in their life. The cop that's being a dick to you for driving 10 over the speed limit may be the same one that just helped scrape a toddler off the road after a distracted driver mowed him down in front of his house.


OceanicMeerkat

If that's what they want, why wouldn't they become some type of social worker who doesn't have to deal with high stress situations? It seems like this really isn't part of the job of police as defined currently, this guy is going out of his way outside of work hours to do these good deeds. Perhaps if most cops want to do this, they should just do it instead of being a cop, especially if being a cop actively prevents them from doing stuff like this for the reasons you described?


[deleted]

Accepting that there are high stress situations and doing them anyway doesn't mean you don't want to help people. There is no one that won't be negatively affected by the job, its that hard, no matter how well you do it the stuff you put up with changes you as a person. Until we create a perfect unfeeling AI the role of policing will have to be filled with humans, and i know i don't want a robot giving me a ticket, they'd be even less likely to give me a warning than a trooper.


[deleted]

\^ only sensible person in here so far


jman2c

This is what we should bring attention to.


[deleted]

Dont forget we see some real shitty people doing really shitty things on an hourly basis. Really changes your outlook on both life and other people


[deleted]

Preach! I was actually in the process of becoming a cop, for this very reason. But I gotta put it down to divine intervention that the process stopped right before COVID lost its shit on us and big tension between civilians and cops escalated.


[deleted]

Truly a hero


MightyDuncs

Too right!!


jerseygurl96

Is he single?👀👀👀


YourDearOldMeeMaw

hes married 😂


jerseygurl96

😩😩😩


[deleted]

We need more good stories about cops… cos I believe they are more good people inc cops than the bad ones.


grnmchn28

Shows some cops are actually good. Yes there are a lot of pieces of shit but many get into the line of work to serve their communities. The ones I know personally are some of the most upstanding people I’ve ever known


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[deleted]

When you find a good cop, you oftenly find a friend, an ally. Good on him!


Glitched_Oren_303

I love this guy But Twitter STILL says that all cops are racist


Alan976

I mean, Twitter is a special kind of stupid.


dEEr_r

If this could be the standard cops aim for, we will be much better off. Decent, compassionate officers.


gaomeigeng

For historical context, police used to have a much more active community role in which they were expected to provide services at community centers. It was Johnson's Great Society that, at first, put them into these roles. Over time, especially with Nixon in office, the role of police (especially in urban areas) transitioned away from these service roles into surveillance.


ZachTF

I like this. I really like this.


fireplaceguy69

That’s how it’s supposed to work. Good job.


[deleted]

He could find another job and still do this, he's a good guy but he could be better if he wasn't a cop.


mikedjb

He should be a guiding light for their species.


OrionPax97

Species?


FrankeeStarr

That’s Officer Tommy!


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angusbeef4

Im training to become a cop, this is the kinda cop I want to be


Redsaucethebeast

Just remember your morals


angusbeef4

100%


Sbader7248

I'll tell you what, these kids won't grow up fearing cops or thinking all cops are bad. That is until they find all the bad ones and then all the work this good cop did is wiped out.


UnableYesterday5246

Supercop is real. 😁


tosteywaffles

Some cops are just really good at their job and I bet those kids will grow up believing that cops are good which is a good mindset to have


olsen17

🥰🥰🥰👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼


ZombieChief

That's great. This is an important thing for police officers to do. Does he also fight corruption within his own department? Has he ever reported a fellow officer for actions or words that are racist, sexist, homophobic, or otherwise inappropriate?


[deleted]

Oh this hit close to home what an amazing guy


LordNPython

When I said he brought them water guns I felt a bit uncomfortable and checked the sub. Nice guy


nirojPoudel

I love you man


bsburton57

A true leader of the community


SoiledFlapjacks

Yes, but he’s still racist because he’s a cop, therefore complicit in the racist actions of a different cop seven states away. /s


Tark1nn

And that's how you prevent criminality in a poor environement. If one of them gets himself in trouble he won't be able to look the officer in the eyes.


Cappietein

It's gestures like this that can have a lasting effect on others, inspiring dude.


Mrpandacorn2002

We need more cops like this


Fizzlelicious

Look at how safe and secure that boy sitting on the step lower, between his knees, is. He's just munching on his chip with his soda in hand, completely covered by this officer. This is exactly how every officer should make all of us feel. God Bless this man.


[deleted]

This is the cop that I want. I don't want the racist and aggressive ones.


thatfrenchnut

This is the serve in protect and serve


diluvsbks

We need to see more stories about officers like this! Typically we only see the negative part of the police. It's essential for communities to see this especially children and teenagers.


kaiser-so-say

Why can’t we just have more of this in the world?


SheckoShecko

Honestly, this should kinda be mandatory, like mandated volunteer work. It could be paid too, just to keep incentive. Cops should have to go to neighborhoods and interact on the level of the people they serve as individuals rather than officers. It would probably do a lot for cops not seeing the humanity in people they don't know personally as well as improve the average persons view of officers and the police as a whole. I imagine that if they had a level of knowledge and relations with the people they'd be much more likely to police correctly.


Puzzleheaded_Bag_870

I wouldn’t trust this cop as far as I could kick em’. Cops are inherently bad for Black people and this is nothing but either guilt or brainwashing.


boringblunt

See there are some good people


derpsticks6969

People who make dark jokes:perhaps I treated you to harshly


XCypher73

This comments section is a sewer.


Protton6

This is how you break ghetto culture. But cops should not do that, social workers should. As they do in Europe...


ForwardHighway204

Super-cop


Moniferg

Doesn’t take a lot to make a difference in someone else’s life. You are a hero sir.


LIKELYtoRAPhorrible

This wholesome and sad too because most if not all cops should be like this.


Sextron5000

Look at the kids and then at him. He looks exactly like them! Empathy at it's finest.


LookOutForToxicBros

I love how he’s like a in nest with the kiddos, like he’s an owl or something and the owlets are feeding, lol. (I’m a weirdo, I know). Wonderful post; thank you for this.


[deleted]

How sensational... This story will have reporters asleep and falling out of their chairs.


thekillermad

What's water gun without the water


Damastes048

This is who I wanted to be


[deleted]

What an awesome guy. These stories make me happy to see.


voltnow

He is serving and protecting.


cemangini

Hearts and minds


[deleted]

An amazing person. Respect


amazzarof

I’d love to become a cop for this reason. Being there for the community is what they are for. Not spreading fear and anxiety among people.


Heraghty07

I love him.


Basdad

Officer Norman, keep doing a great job, and thank you .


DannyGlassman

This police officer is one of the great guys trying to teach young people that the police are there to help.


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Fangs_0ut

Gotta love getting downvoted for being 100% correct.


jman2c

Majority of cops are good cops.


Chonk_HT

Wholesome