The deaths of Ferguson's Michael Brown and New York's Eric Garner at the hands of police have set off protests around the country, prompting citizens to reflect on the role of law enforcement in our everyday lives.
Throughout the years, there have been countless examples of cops making mistakes, and doing harm. There are, however, just as many — if not more — untold stories of police officers doing the right thing, in many cases going beyond the call of duty to serve their communities. It's important to remember these as well.
Gathered below are a few stories of police doing good in just the last week alone.
Cops Drive 87-Year-Old Woman Across State to See Sick Son
USA Today reported that four state troopers in Utah helped Helen "Skeeter" Smith of Panaca, Nevada, reach her ailing son in the hospital Friday.
After being pulled over on I-15, Smith accidentally backed up into a police car while trying to pull back onto the highway.
"Then she started crying and told me about (her son's) condition and what treatment he was under and how they had moved him to ICU," said Trooper Jeff Jones. "I said, 'I don't feel comfortable letting you drive.' She was almost in hysterics about not being able to go."
That's when Jones called his fellow Highway Patrolmen, and arranged to relay Smith from one car to the next until she reached her son.
"Four good-lookin' patrol boys brought me," Smith later told reporters.
Cop Buys Eggs for Woman Caught Shoplifting to Feed Her Family
Alabama Police Officer William Stacy was called to a Dollar General store in Tarrant on Saturday after employees caught a woman slipping three eggs into her jacket.
After discovering that the woman, Helen Johnson, was just 50 cents shy of being able to buy the dozen eggs to feed her grandkids — who hadn't eaten in two days — he bought the eggs for her.
"He did something he didn’t have to do. He just bought me eggs," Johnson
told Fox affiliate WIAT. "This man — he pushed my world in the right direction. And I will never forget it."
After a bystander captured video of Johnson and Stacy hugging, the story went viral, prompting a flood of donations to the fire department's annual toy and food drive.
Police Raise Money for Daughters of Homicide Victim
Leonor Castillo, 37, a PTA officer at a southern California elementary school, was allegedly run down and killed last week by her estranged husband, who turned himself in Monday.
Realizing that the couple's three daughters were now deprived of both parents, Chula Vista police are putting together Christmas stockings for their three daughters, ages 3, 8, and 10.
To help fill them and cover their living expenses, detectives from the department’s Crimes of Violence unit have organized a fundraising effort. Officers in the department and officers in nearby jurisdictions are reaching into their own pockets.
Chula Vista police Lt. Fritz Reber
told the San Diego Union-Tribune on Tuesday that the response so far has been overwhelming.
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