Cop Pulled Doctor Over, Made Her Cry With Gesture

A doctor prepared to receive a speeding ticket as she was pulled over by a Minnesota state trooper. Instead, she received a warning and a gesture of goodwill that has her feeling that "we are going to be OK." Dr. Sarosh Ashraf Janjua, a cardiologist at a coronavirus quarantine unit in Duluth, says she "burst into tears" when Trooper Brian Schwartz handed her not a ticket, but five highly-prized N95 masks from his own state-supplied stack. The Boston native, who'd been driving 85mph in a 70mph zone along Interstate 35 in North Branch on March 21, had informed Schwartz that she was in the area for work, per the Star Tribune. That's when Schwartz noticed "what appeared to be two used N95 masks" in Janjua's purse, Minnesota State Patrol tells CNN.

Aware of a shortage of personal protective equipment, Schwartz "thought [Janjua] could use the extra masks," a spokesman tells the Star Tribune. Indeed, "I have felt afraid of not having adequate protective equipment, and in my darkest moments, have worried about what would happen if I fell sick far from home," Janjua—who also works in Buffalo, NY—wrote on Facebook. But "this complete stranger, who owed me nothing and is more on the front lines than I am, shared his precious masks with me, without my even asking," she wrote. "I think he teared up a little as well, before wishing me well and walking away." Per the Star Tribune, Schwartz's kind act left Janjua "a little less" worried, "illogical as it may seem," as "I know there are good people like him everywhere." (More uplifting news stories.)