CORAL SPRINGS, FLA. (WSVN) - It’s the holiday season, and one local police department decided to spread some holiday cheer in their city.
Coral Springs Police officers handed out gift cards, toys and food bags instead of tickets, and recorded the reactions of people they pulled over.
“Nobody ever wants to see a police car pulling them over, right? That is not the case this time,” the agency wrote on Facebook.
“We’re hoping to make this holiday a lot brighter for our residents, bring a little cheer,” said officer Natalie Cohen. “We’re going to be handing out gift cards, some toys, some food bags. We’re just looking to lift their spirits.”
Officer Cohen pulled one man over, who thought he was going to be cited for damage to the back of his car. But when she handed him a gift card, he said, “Really? Stop lying!”
Throughout the video, residents’ initially-somber faces quickly lit up with smiles upon learning about they would be getting store gift cards, not tickets.
“Would that help you in the holidays?” another officer asked a woman he had pulled over.
“You can’t even imagine, yes,” she tearfully replied as she gave him a hug. “I don’t even have a job right now.”
Another woman exclaimed that the surprise “made my day!”
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