diff --git a/lib/jekyll/static_file.rb b/lib/jekyll/static_file.rb
index 0ed0fbfe..3e7d0d25 100644
--- a/lib/jekyll/static_file.rb
+++ b/lib/jekyll/static_file.rb
@@ -80,7 +80,11 @@ module Jekyll
 
       FileUtils.mkdir_p(File.dirname(dest_path))
       FileUtils.rm(dest_path) if File.exist?(dest_path)
-      FileUtils.cp(path, dest_path)
+      if @site.safe || Jekyll.env == "production"
+        FileUtils.cp(path, dest_path)
+      else
+        FileUtils.copy_entry(path, dest_path)
+      end
       File.utime(@@mtimes[path], @@mtimes[path], dest_path)
 
       true