‘Do you have a flame thrower device?’: You’ve never seen anything quite like police gentle-parenting an armed man down from violence

A police officer recently deployed gentle parenting tactics to de-escalate a scary situation involving a man with a machete and possibly a flame-thrower in Portland, OR. And if the case weren’t so potentially serious, it might seem like a skit from Portlandia.

In the footage shared on TikTok, an officer speaks to a man he calls “Bernard” through a loudspeaker. It’s unclear if it’s the same case, but in August, Portland news outlet KOIN reported that a man named Bernard Johnson threatened patrons at an arcade in the city with a machete and hatchet. A TikTok comment mentioned the Ground Kontrol Portland arcade attack last summer, suggesting the “Bernard” in the TikTok post is Johnson from KOIN’s story.

Back in August, Crisis Negotiation and Sheriff’s Emergency Response Team (SERT) units responded to the call a man had threatened people in the arcade. Everyone inside the arcade was evacuated, no one was injured, and Johnson, who was believed to have been under the influence at the time, was taken into custody.

The officer in the TikTok post with an arcade sign visible also refers to a “machete” and asks Bernard, “Do we have your permission to get the machete?” like a parent asking a child to put down fistfuls of chocolate cookies or to stop finger-painting on the wall.

The officer then says calmly on TikTok. “I can’t send officer up there because you have what I think is some kind of flame-thrower.” And one comment responds, “The de-escalation skills I hope to have one day as someone working in psych.”

“Do you have a flame-thrower device in your hands, Bernard?”

The whole thing becomes even more surreal when the officer says, “Do you have a flame-thrower device in your hands, Bernard?” Although we can’t hear his voice, Bernard seems to say he does, to which the officer responds, “Yeah, yeah, you do,” like a preschool teacher telling some rowdy kids to make “better choices.” Or, as another comment pointed out, “… [H]e sounded so disappointed 💀.” Another added, “The gentle parenting omg.”

“I appreciate the fact you threw the machete”

The tense negotiation continues in another TikTok post where the officer offers Bernard some water and is heard telling him, “I appreciate you throwing that out, Bernard,” possibly referring to the machete. One comment from a social services worker called it relieving to see how well the officer dealt with the situation. But another added, “This is the correct way to de-escalate but it being on loudspeaker does make it very funny.”

Both clips end before the situation resolves, but according to the Portland Police Bureau (PPB), once in custody, Johnson was taken to the hospital and then booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center on menacing and unlawful use of weapon charges. Also according to the PPB, Johnson had an outstanding warrant, suggesting the officer speaking with “Bernard” on TikTok may have known who he was. Or as one comment said, “I get the feeling Bernard has done this before. .”

Johnson pleaded not guilty, according to a Portland news station after the incident, and Johnson was expected back in court in late September. Since then, there have been no further updates in the case. But if not for the officer’s skillful negotiation at the time, the whole thing could have ended worse. Or, as an Instagram comment on the same flame-thrower footage noticed, “Cop is talking to him like he’s a preschool teacher ‘hey Bernard listen buddy you got some big feelings happening huh bud let’s talk about them’.”