Man made a confession after attempted break-in—instead of reporting him, the victim changed his life with one act
Sometimes a person might need a little understanding and a second chance to right their wrongs. A man got that chance after he made a confession post an attempted break-in. The person, Rashawn Turner, had tried to burglarize a non-profit run by Ralph Rodriguez, a councilman in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The man's face was covered when Rodriguez confronted him. He immediately ran away after that and Rodriguez had no way to find out who he was. But Turner reached out to the councilman on social media and made a confession that changed his life, per CBS News.
Turner was wearing gloves, a hat, glasses and a mask during the break-in and all the non-profit had as evidence of the incident was a blurry picture on the doorbell camera. But instead of saving himself from potential charges, Turner reached out to Rodriguez on social media and confessed that he was behind the burglary. He revealed his name and told Rodriguez that he was ready to face the consequences of his actions. "I have to be willing to face the consequences and that is what I'm ready to do," the man wrote. Rodriguez learned that the man didn't have any previous criminal records and got an idea. He didn't press charges and asked the man what had pushed him to take such an action.
"I actually took the time to hear his story, see the environment in which he lives. And I get it. Poverty has a way of pushing you to do things that you would have never imagined you were even capable of doing," Rodriguez remarked. "I made a severe lapse in my judgment that night. My father was struggling with basic needs and I was like, I can't sit here and just wait for what little we still have to be taken away. I have to do something," the 22-year-old pointed out. After Rodriguez heard his story, he sent the man money and ensured that he had some form of financial stability before the next steps.
"Making sure he's financially good and has some clothes on his back. Because what he doesn't need anymore is any more disappointments. I'm pretty sure people have told him things in his life and dropped the ball 10 out of 10 times. It's just not what I'm prepared to do," the councilman went on. He also gave Turner a part-time job to paint the non-profit organization's space and helped him enroll for job training. "I thought there would be no one willing to help me, but you never know, you just have to ask. But I wasn't willing to ask," Turner shared. He was really glad to get a second chance to improve his life. "You just need a shot. And I'd be remiss if I didn't try my best to give you that shot," Rodriguez went on.
People appreciated the man's solution in the comments section of the YouTube video. @misscelanious7844 wrote, "That man could relate to the young man. Hurt people hurt people. Mr Rodrigues has the right plan. I applaud him." @btcprox commented, "Seems like a pretty good example of how a scheme for guaranteed income + basic needs could reduce crime, since there are these people driven to crime out of desperate circumstances rather than malice and ill-will towards other people." @tag-i2v remarked, "Wow, how great are both of the folks. Sometimes you just do things you normally would not do and regret them. This man just needed a little help. Thanks, Ralph, for being the help he needed."
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