Offered the opportunity - really? :lol:
Threat, intimidation - some have said a few LEOs have gotten personal, private services that way. I guess those victims were freely making a choice to proceed too.
Bzzzzzzzt! Flag on the play; logical fallacy of false analogy. In the case you presented the "offer" was for "personal, private services" which is either against state law, or at least department policy and probably both.
Those victims weren't the issue being discussed.
IF we may stick to teh matter at hand, the young man was offered at no cost to him or his dignity a way to avoid a criminal record. There is no reason Officer Friendly HAD to make the offer, he could as easily just handcuffed the young man, searched him, taken him to the police station where he'd have been booked. From there he would have had to raise bail money and likely either have a conviction on his record or pay to have his record expunged if the county solicitor requested noli prosequi for the case.
He was given a break, you shouldn't object to the nice officer doing a nice thing when he Didn't Have To.
edit:
Honestly though, where's the 'coercion'? "Look kid, either do a few push-ups or I'll take you down to the police station, which I could do ANYWAY if I weren't being nice?"
