By Carli Teproff
Miami Herald
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. — Miami-Dade police officers were lauded Monday for saving a man who threatened to jump from the overpass on the Palmetto Expressway and Southwest 40th Street (Bird Road) Saturday.
“I’m extremely proud, although not surprised, of the officers’ heroic acts to save a human life,” Miami-Dade Police Director Freddy Ramirez said in a tweet. “I’m also grateful for the citizen video and body cam footage which allows us a glimpse of what is so often unnoticed, our finest in action safeguarding life and protecting our community!”
In the dramatic video shared Monday, a female officer could be heard pleading with the man to come down from the ledge.
“Don’t do it buddy, don’t do it,” she urges the 19-year-old man. “Don’t do it, please.”
Uniformed officers from Miami-Dade’s Kendall and Midwest districts responding to reports of a missing man found the teen in crisis.
“Despite several attempts to plead with the man, he suspended himself over the side of the ramp, above traffic,” police said in a news release. “A quick-thinking officer lunged toward the man and was able to grab a hold of him, and with the assistance of additional units, were able to pull the man to safety.”
The man was taken to an area hospital for a mental health evaluation and medical treatment under Florida’s Baker Act.
If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, call the Suicide Prevention Lifeline at (800) 273-8255 or (800) SUICIDE or 211 for Switchboard 211. For more information, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Miami-Dade County, at (800) 950-NAMI (6264). For additional resources, go to namimiami.org/crisis-info. If facing imminent danger, call 911.
©2020 Miami Herald