Police Officer Gives Teen Push-Ups Instead of Jail Time

An Arlington, Texas police officer decided to punish a weed-smoking teen in a way that didn’t end with him going to jail or worse.

The cop, who has since been identified as Officer Eric Ball, was off-duty when he noticed the strong smell of marijuana coming from the unidentified teen.

“Marijuana gives [off] a distinct odor. He knew what the teen was up to,” Lt. Chris Cook with Arlington police told WFAA. “He said, ‘You give me 200 push-ups, I won’t put you in jail.”

Officer Ball remembered his high school days of playing football and how his coached disciplined the team, which is what sparked the push-up idea.

The teen complied and the officer ended up locating his mother, whom he was at the theater with, and not only did she agree with the alternative discipline- she even thought it could have been a little worse. “She gave a stern warning to her son and even told the officer, ‘I would have made him do more push-ups,'” said Lt. Cook.

Take a look at the now-viral video, posted by onlooker Raiza Paredez, of the teen facing his punishment below: