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Texas officer lets teen do 200 pushups to avoid pot citation

ARLINGTON, Texas - A North Texas police officer recently gave a teenager the option of being cited for marijuana possession or doing 200 pushups after the boy was caught smoking pot outside a movie theater.

Big UP's to the Arlington Police Officer that made the young black guy that decided to smoke weed on the movie theater parking lot to do push-ups then take him to jail or shoot him just Cuz. We need more cops like this. #Policeeverywhereneedtotakenotes #ArlingtonPoliceDept

Posted by Raiza Paredez on Monday, December 26, 2016

The teen opted for the pushups Monday after Arlington officer Eric Ball smelled the odor of marijuana.

Police Lt. Christopher Cook says Ball was working an off-duty detail at the theater when he encountered the teen. He found the boy’s mother inside and the woman hugged and thanked the officer.

Cook says the boy was respectful and realized he’d made a mistake. He says Ball played football under coaches who used pushups to ensure discipline.

A video showing the teen struggling to complete the pushups was posted on Facebook and has been viewed more than 100,000 times.

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