Body camera footage released Friday in the case of police officer accused of using a chokehold during an arrest shows him putting his arm around a man’s neck and holding it there for about 10 seconds shortly after handcuffing him.
While holding the standing man around his neck during the June 7 arrest at a city building in Greeley, Officer Kenneth Amick accused him of trying to grab his hands. The man denied it, his voice distorted, while still in the hold. Amick released the chokehold after another officer stepped toward them and said “Take it easy. Take it easy. Take it easy.”
A judge ordered the release of the video on Thursday, siding with a coalition of news media. The coalition argued that it should be released under a Colorado law enacted this year in response to nationwide protests over the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis. It generally requires that footage be made public, upon request, when a complaint is lodged against a police officer.
Amick, who is charged with second-degree assault, is scheduled to enter a plea in the case on Oct. 22. His lawyer, David Goddard, declined to comment on the allegations against him or the release of the footage.