Police Couldn't Get Suicidal Man Off Ledge. A Cat Did

Pet brought peaceful end to 3-hour SF standoff
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 9, 2015 12:18 AM CDT
Cat Gets Suicidal Man Off Ledge
"Never underestimate the power of an owner's love for their pet kitten," an officer tweeted.   (San Francisco Police Department)

When hostage negotiators couldn't talk a suicidal man down from a building ledge in San Francisco, they prepared for the worst—until his cat turned up. Police say the suspected car thief ran from a traffic stop on Wednesday and spent more than three hours hanging out of a third-floor window, threatening to jump, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The man apparently wasn't swayed by relatives who arrived at the scene, but when police realized they had also brought his pet orange-and-white cat, they took it to the negotiators and the suspect soon surrendered peacefully. Police say the man, who had been driving a stolen Toyota, appeared to be in an "altered state," KTVU reports.

"Never underestimate the power of the love between people and their pets," a police spokesman tells the Chronicle. "I think it was great to think outside the box like the officers did. It made enough of an impact on this person to bring him down and come to his senses." (An NYPD officer who tried to rescue a cat had to be rescued by firefighters.)

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