Teen Says He Was Handcuffed After Officer Commented, “It’s a Warm Day to Be Wearing That Jacket”

A video recorded by a Pennsylvania teen is going viral after a police encounter that began with an officer commenting on his hooded jacket and ended with the teen in handcuffs.

The encounter was recorded by the teen himself and was reportedly later shared by his father on social media before being reshared by Instagram account @theshaderoom and X user @LASHYBILLS.

The Teen Was Wearing a Hooded Jacket When the Officer Approached

In the clip, the teen is walking down a road when a police officer can be heard coming up behind him saying, "It's a warm day to be wearing that jacket." The teen simply turns the camera toward himself and continues walking. The officer, who remains behind him as the teen keeps walking, then tells him, "You're going to get hit by a car here," while pointing toward what appears to be an approaching vehicle.

A car can be heard in the background as the officer tells the teen to stop. "I'm asking you to stop," the officer says. The teen continues recording and walking, but the officer then takes it a step further by grabbing him by the shoulder of his jacket while again saying, "I'm asking you to stop."

The teen then pans the camera toward his face, and while he keeps his cool, he still looks shocked that the officer has put his hands on him. The officer continues holding onto him before telling the teen, "I'm doing a traffic stop on you. You walked across the road in front of a car."

A short time later, the teen records himself sitting in the back of a police cruiser. He manages to keep his phone in his hand, showing viewers that he is handcuffed. In The Shade Room's post, the account says this was the teen's first interaction with a police officer.

The teen's father, Jessie Lopez Sr., told The Shade Room that his son was wearing the hooded jacket because "he suffers from eczema, and direct sunlight aggravates his skin condition." He added, "Although it was warm outside, there was a legitimate medical reason for him wearing his hood."

According to The Shade Room, Lopez Sr. also said in a caption for the video that he is using the incident as a learning experience for him and his son. "This was a lesson for both of us. I need to make sure he knows how to interact with police, even when he feels he's done nothing wrong. Things can escalate fast. He ended up handcuffed and detained because he didn't want to stop and answer their questions."

In the comments, one viewer called out the officer, saying, "He clearly doesn't know much about youth of today! They wear hoodies and joggers in 90-degree heat!!!" Another praised the teen's behavior throughout the interaction, calling the way he handled the situation "impressive."

The Daily Dot was unable to independently verify the circumstances surrounding the encounter. The video begins after the officer approaches the teen and does not include the events leading up to the interaction.