Paterson, NJ police captain saves hanging woman

There are a lot of strange and unsettling images surging through social media platforms at any given time.

After seeing a noose pictured in a park that was thought to be in a local park, Captain Steve Rooney from the Paterson Police Department decided to follow his gut and walk through Pennington Park, according to northjersey.com.

As he walked the river bank, he discovered an empty parked car and then a woman hanging by her neck from a nearby tree. Captain Rooney acted immediately, grabbing her feet and lifted her up to relieve the pressure on her neck.

Calling out for help to a local fisherman, he held the woman up as the good Samaritan broke the branch enough to lower her to the ground.

If not for the instinct of this hero officer, the woman would have died. It's another reminder that our police officers are the real foundation and backbone of public safety. Officers never know what the shift is going to offer when they suit up and head to the job.

It is another example of why we can never allow politicians to balance their budgets at the expense of the police and officers deserve support when they are on the job and into retirement.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Spadea. Any opinions expressed are Bill's own.

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