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NYC cop buys shoes for homeless man in viral photo

The caption explained that the photographer, also a cop, overheard the officer telling the man they were for him and helped put them on

Editor’s Note: We’re looking for photos like the one below. Any images which capture courage, compassion, comedy, commitment, poignancy — anything that might restore the citizenry’s faith in law enforcement — in hopes we can help PoliceOne Columnist Val Van Brocklin to put together a book with as many such pictures as possible. If you have a photo to submit, please send it to Val via email.

By PoliceOne Staff

NEW YORK — A New York police officer has become an internet sensation with a photo of him giving boots to a homeless man going viral.

The picture, taken by a tourist in Times Square, shows officer Lawrence Deprimo, 25, crouched beside a barefoot homeless man and a pair of boots.

The picture, originally posted onto NYPD’s Facebook page, had a caption explaining that the photographer, also a cop, overheard the officer telling the man they were size 12, all season boots, and then he proceeded to help the man put them on.

“You could see the blisters on the man’s feet,” said Deprimo, according to MSN.

When PoliceOne posted on its own Facebook page, it quickly attracted more than 180,000 likes and 14,000 shares.