Photo Credit: Boulder Co. Sheriff’s Office via 9News.com

You’ve probably never heard a standoff with law enforcement referred to as “adorable,” or even “cute,” but those are definitely the kind of words that come to mind with this unique confrontation between Boulder, Colorado deputies and a baby owl.

The Boulder County Sheriff’s Office tweeted photos of Deputy Sophie Berman kneeling on a gravel road before the wide-eyed fuzzy ball of fur.

The deputies were working their usual beat when they noticed the tiny owlet. Not one to be intimidated, the villain locked eyes and stared them down. Fortunately for all of us, Berman decided to capture a video of the creature who just continued its wide-eyed stare. “Our Sheriff’s Office deputies were driving near a campground on July 23 when they were stopped in their tracks by this young northern saw whet owl,” the video’s caption on YouTube reads, which you can watch here:

The sheriff’s office said that the owlet was a Northern Saw Whet Owl. In a tweet, one of the deputy’s wrote, “After curious head-twisting on both sides, it flew safely away.” It ended with the hashtag #DeputiesLoveBabyOwls.

Presumably, the baby’s mother wouldn’t have been pleased by the encounter, but there’s no word if she was around to see her owlet’s up close look at humans.