Finest not charged in knee case

The Queens cop accused of pressing his knee to the neck of a reckless driving suspect will not be prosecuted, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said Friday.

The Jan. 2 incident, captured on cell phone video, appeared to show Officer Thomas Montario with his knee on the neck of Sircarlyle Arnold as police were arresting him on charges of nearly hitting a cop with his illegal all-terrain vehicle as he drove in circles at a vigil for a friend in South Jamaica.

“Look at his knee!” one witness yelled over and over.

The incident drew comparisons to George Floyd, who died with a Minneapolis cop’s knee pressed to his neck last May.

Katz announced she would investigate whether the officer used excessive force during the arrest, specifically by using a chokehold or otherwise blocking an airway. A city law passed in 2020 subjects officers to prosecution for using holds that excessively constrict detainees’ breathing or blood flow.

“There is insufficient evidence of an unlawful method of restraint being used during the handcuffing procedure of Mr. Arnold,” Katz said in a statement.

The evidence in the case does not show that the hold placed on Arnold “restricted the flow of air or blood by either compressing Mr. Arnold’s windpipe or the carotid arteries on each side of his neck,” Katz said. Also, there was no evidence the hold restricted Arnold’s diaphragm.

Katz said the conclusion was reached after consulting with two medical experts and an NYPD tactics expert, and interviewing multiple officers as well as Arnold, who did not require medical treatment.

Police body camera footage was also part of the probe, she said. Montario’s camera was dislodged and damaged during the scuffle and captured only audio of the incident, the Daily News reported in February.

Arnold, 34, earlier this year told The News he was determined not to die like Floyd.

“I didn’t realize what was happening,” he recalled. “I heard a lot of people screaming ... I felt something on my neck, but my adrenaline was rushing so much. Then when I saw the [cell phone] video I was like, ‘Oh my God!’ ”

“I didn’t resist at all,” he added. “I’m saying to myself, ‘Why would you guys treat me like that? I didn’t kill no one. I didn’t hurt no one.’ ”

Arnold was charged with misdemeanor reckless endangerment and marijuana possession, plus four traffic offenses.