With police, community relations under the microscope across the country, one Binghamton police officer is tackling community outreach from a different perspective.

Remember when you were younger and would play outside with your friends after school for hours?

Well, believe it or not there are still plenty of kids who do just that, like Robert, who can usually be found playing football.

Robert's mom, Chasity watches the kids play from her porch on any given day, but on this day something was different.

"At first we were kinda nervous because we didn't know what he was there for and when he got out and said, 'Who has the best arm?' We all smiled and said who had the best arm," said Robert.

Binghamton Police Officer Michael Chewens pulled up to play some catch with Robert and his friends.

"Sunday afternoon, we were pretty slow and I drove around the corner, saw these guys playing and said, 'You know what, that looks like fun.' So I decided to join them and luckily they had a spot for one more," said Chewens.

Chasity recorded the whole thing. She couldn't believe what was happening.

"They always see the cops here doing their job, working you know, looking for someone that did something bad. So it was nice to see them be active and give the young kids an image that not all cops are bad, not all cops are gonna hurt you," said Chasity.

Chewens played catch with the kids and even showed them the inside of a police vehicle. Officer Chewens hopes this helps shed light on the police force.

"I was just happy for one time in their lives to show them that we're not all bad guys. And that's truth, is that we're out here every day putting our lives on the line for them and I'm happy to do that and happy to finally meet some of the kids I see every day hanging out," said Chewens. 

Improving community relations, one touchdown at a time.