A woman in Garland saw something good the other day and she shared the picture she took with NBC 5.
It shows a police officer sitting at a patio table calmly talking to a man Michelle Mokszycki described as “enraged.” She and her family were in the drive-thru of a coffee shop and saw the man yelling, upset and decided to call police to get him some help.
“An officer named officer Reese came and he approached the man, and what an answer to a prayer he was,” Mokszycki said. “He came and sat at the table with the gentleman, and he got eye-to-eye level."
“Due to the call that came in, it wasn't like it was criminal. It was another human being calling about someone who potentially needed help,” officer Alton Reese said. “Just a man talking to another man. A human talking to another human.”
“This man who was in a fit of rage, stomping and putting his fist down, calmed down and it was completely de-escalated,” Mokszycki said.
After the conversation between the men, the man who’d appeared to be troubled left with no help needed.
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Mokszycki and her husband were so impressed with the officer, they shared the story on social media.
“I was moved to tears at how the officer respected this man and made it clear that he was there to help him. These are the stories that should be in the news. This gentleman deserves a pat on the back and the recognition of doing an excellent job,” she wrote in her post.
Her post has been shared and liked again and again, even as far away as Canada.
“I was overwhelmed. shocked and surprised. I woke up the next morning and my phone was loaded with texts and pictures,” Reese said. “I don't have social media myself. I was like, okay, what's going on?”
As Reese, an officer for six years in his hometown thinks back to that September 10 day, he believes it boils down to one word - trust.
“Building some trust. In these days 'cuz that seems to have gone away a little bit. I want to bring that back, people trusting law enforcement, especially in the city of Garland. I want my community to know we are there for them and to help them in the time of need,” he said.
