Body camera footage showed officers talking to the man while giving him space, asking how they could help him. Officers got the man’s grandfather and brother on the phone so he could talk to them and also left a jacket near him so he could put it on and get warm.
During the incident Boone is heard asking the man why he climbed over the railing and what police could do to help him.
“We’re here to help you redeem yourself,” Boone said. “If you fell off that bridge, there’s no chance for that. We don’t want to see that happen. You’re already three months clean. You’ve got your whole life ahead of you.”
After approximately 90 minutes, the man climbed back over the railing and went with police to get help.
The incident was a few weeks after Boone participated in hostage negotiation team training that included de-escalation and crisis intervention.
“Being as I have done this for a long time and I’m a big proponent of this type of training, it was actually kind of a proud moment that Officer Boone was able to talk to this guy and basically negotiate him to the other side of the rail,” said Dayton police Lt. David Matthews, commander of the Hostage Negotiation Team. “And ultimately no harm was done and the person got the help that he needed.”
Matthews called Boone’s response “extraordinary.”
“That is a testament to the training that we did,” he said. “And as I watched the video and some of the things that he was saying to the person that was in distress, that was threatening to jump, it was exactly the things that we had taught during the training.”
In addition to Dayton police, University of Dayton police and Dayton Fire crews also responded to the scene. Dayton officers also responded to the man’s grandfather’s home.
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