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Post of YPD officer playing with kids gets attention
VIDEO: YPD officer speaks on interacting with kids
Gallery
YPD officer speaks on interacting with kids
Video
Patrolman Steven Gibson became a viral sensation after he interacted with kids at Homestead Park on Sunday. Gibson speaks on entertaining the kids, being a role model, and helping the Valley.
By JOE GORMAN
jgorman@vindy.com
YOUNGSTOWN
It was the end of a double shift Sunday afternoon, but city Patrolman Steven Gibson still took advantage of an opportunity he rarely gets on midnight turn after spying a group of kids in Homestead Park on the South Side.
Dwayne Bulls was there to catch it on video.
Gibson, who typically works midnights but had to stay over Sunday and work a double, invited the group of children to explore his cruiser. He also played on the playground equipment with some of them and posed for a picture.
Bulls posted two videos and a picture to his Facebook page, and since then, the post has had more 860 shares.
Gibson said he was surprised at the attention.
“If it brings positive attention to the profession, then I’m all for it,” Gibson said.
Gibson, who has been on the force since August 2015, said when he saw the kids about 1 p.m. Sunday he decided to stop because he likes interacting with children in general, but working midnights, he does not often get to do that.
Bulls said he took a niece to the park to play and walked across the street to get something when he saw the police car.
At first, Bulls thought something was wrong.
But then he saw Gibson on the playground equipment with the children.
“He was playing around with them,” Bulls said. “I haven’t seen the kids this excited in awhile.”
Bulls said Gibson was asking the children what they wanted to know about his cruiser and police work.
The children were fascinated by the police car and Gibson let them get inside, but not in the back. Gibson told the kids that they are good and will be our future leaders, and those types of people do not sit in the backs of police cars.
“I wanted this to not just be positive, but to be lasting,” Gibson said. “I wanted them [children] to get the idea of sitting in the front seat, not the back.”
Bulls said he was impressed with how Gibson told the kids he did not want them to sit in the back of the cruiser.
“He said, ‘The back seat is for bad guys – and you’re not bad guys,’” Bulls said.
Bulls said he decided to take pictures and video because he thinks the public needs to know when police do something good.
“I thought it was something everybody should see,” Bulls said. “Everybody should see not all police officers are bad.”
Gibson also caught the attention of his superiors at the police department, who have written him up for a commendation for his actions. In his recommendation for a commendation, Staff Inspector Lt. Brian Butler wrote that Gibson’s actions brought credit to the department.
“Officer Gibson was on mandated overtime from midnight and was most likely fatigued but still managed to engage in this positive community interaction, thus showcasing himself, as well as the agency, in a positive light,” Butler wrote. “Officer Gibson should be formally recognized for this in order to reinforce this type of positive interaction between our officers and the community.”