The Cliffside Rescue: Why a Hero's Good Deed Ended in Handcuffs, photo 5

First, they loaded the dog onto the raft. Then, Aaron and Mark hopped on. Rescuers on the opposite shore used heavy-duty ropes to pull the raft through the dangerous white water toward safety.

The dog was safe. The men were alive. But as Aaron stepped onto dry land, the cheers of the crowd were cut short by the click of metal.

Instead of a handshake or a medal, Aaron was met by police officers who immediately placed him under arrest. The crowd was stunned. He had just risked his life to save an animal, and now he was being treated like a criminal.

“Why were you arrested?” an interviewer later asked him. Aaron looked dazed. “They said I endangered myself and others by traversing the river,” he explained.