Jacksonville Officer Credits ‘Spirit of God’ after Talking Man Down from Bridge

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A Jacksonville, Fla., police officer is crediting the power of God after helping persuade a suicidal man to step back from a bridge – praying with him, offering hope, and reminding him of those who love him.

Officer Antonio Richardson was called late one night in mid-April to assist with traffic on a local bridge, where fellow officers were working to persuade a suicidal man not to jump from the Dames Point Bridge, the tallest span in Jacksonville.

Soon, though, those same officers called on Richardson to step in, aware of his background in ministry.

Now-viral bodycam footage shows Richardson speaking words of hope to the unidentified person, telling him, “Whatever you're going through, man, you can get through. …You can get through this. Come on, let’s talk about it.”

Soon, Richardson turned the conversation to faith. 

“Can I at least have prayer with you? You believe in prayer – I know that. Just touch my hands,” Richardson says in the bodycam footage, reaching his hand out to the man, who was inches away from falling. 

Richardson reminded the man of the many people in his life he loved – and who loved him in return.

“I'm praying with you – but if you jump, you're gonna hurt other people, and they're gonna be hurting just like you’re hurting now. The cycle has got to stop – of hurt.”

Eventually, the man walked away from the ledge and embraced Richardson. Both men were crying. 

The feel-good story has received well-deserved attention from media across the nation. Richardson spoke with Fox News’ Fox & Friends.

“I was just there to stop the traffic,” Richardson told Fox News. “And then a couple other officers who knew my position as a pastor, they asked me to come over and talk with the guy – and I just engaged him in conversation. I didn't know what I was going to say – nothing was scripted.”

Richardson credits the “Spirit of God.”

“I did not want to seem him jump,” he said. “I did not believe he was going to jump. I just felt within myself that God was going to spare his life, and He did.” 

The Jacksonville officer estimates the entire episode spanned about 40 minutes.

“I was afraid, but I was praying, and God spared his life,” Richardson said. “...During the conversation, he had told me his love for his family, his concern for them, and because he had that concern, I knew that that would be the basis of us giving him hope for tomorrow. He was going through some things, and he did not want to hurt his family, though. He wanted to hurt himself at the time, he did want to hurt his family.”

It was, safe to say, one of the most emotional moments of his career.

“It was a prayer answered,” Richardson said. “I was relieved. Immediately after, I called my wife, and I just broke down crying,” he said. “It was overwhelming to me. It was a dramatic moment. …I just went and sat in my patrol car and just wept like a baby because I saw a miracle to me. That was a miracle from God.”

Photo Credit: Jacksonville Police Department

Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel. 

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