When this toddler needed someone to watch her, a cop unexpectedly became a star babysitter.
A father, who had a court appointment, was unable to find babysitter for his 2-year-old daughter so he brought her along to the courthouse in Orem, Utah, last week. When he found out he was unable to bring her into the court room, Officer Kevin Norris volunteered to babysit and ended up having a grand time with the tot, eventually ending the visit with the 2-year-old falling asleep in his lap.
The adorable interaction was caught on surveillance tape and shared on Facebook by the Orem Police Department, and the Internet ended up falling in love with the officer and his gesture of compassion.
"We're not just officers who are out there to arrest people," Norris told KUTV of his noble actions. "We're out there to make our community a better place."
During their time together, the girl and Norris, who's a father himself, played games and enjoyed treats and drinks, the department's public information officer Craig Martinez told The Huffington Post. The officer also watched cartoons with the girl on his phone before she eventually fell asleep.
But Martinez told HuffPost that the babysitting gig happened by chance. Right before the dad, a defendant, was about to enter the courtroom, he was stopped by the bailiff and informed he couldn't bring the child in.
Norris, who was waiting to testify in a hearing, happened to be sitting near the courtroom door and heard the conversation between the dad and the bailiff. So Norris took it upon himself, with the father's permission, to look after the child.
The dad was especially grateful for Norris' actions.
"He's a defendant -- he's been charged with some kind of traffic or criminal defense," Martinez said of the father. "But he's still been nothing but supportive of us. He thanked us and even made the statement that he appreciated Officer Norris and that he's praying for us all -- he's great."
Martinez explained that Norris' actions demonstrate the kind of attitude that the department regularly promotes.
"Our police chief is big about pushing our officers to go out and have good, positive contacts with the public," he said.
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