Former ‘SNL’ Cast Member Jay Pharoah Says LAPD Mistook Him For Suspect While Jogging, Kneeled On His Neck

Saturday Night Live alum Jay Pharoah said that he was stopped by officers from the Los Angeles Police Department who mistook him for a suspect while he was on a jog, kneeling on his neck before eventually realizing they had made a mistake and letting him go.

The actor and comedian recounted the incident in a post to Instagram, saying that four officers stopped him with their guns drawn while he was running down a sidewalk in the city. Pharoah said the police officers told him that he matched the description of a suspect they were seeking, a black man wearing gray sweatpants and a gray shirt.

Pharoah said that he saw an officer’s gun in his peripheral vision and heard the cop shouting at him to get on the ground and spread his arms.

He said the officers — who he pointed out were not taking precaution to prevent the spread of coronavirus — placed him in handcuffs and put a knee to his neck.

“Three more officers drove up … it’s hot, corona is definitely something to be worried about, the police officers didn’t have on gloves, they didn’t have on masks … When they put me in cuffs, after they were all on me, an officer put his knee on my neck,” he said.

As the New York Post noted, the incident took place in late April, just before video of Ahmaud Arbery’s killing was released. In a preview of his appearance on the CBS show The Talk airing Monday, Pharoah said he was lucky that he was famous, telling the officers to look him up on Google and they would see they had made a mistake. At that time, the officers detaining Pharoah had been told that the real suspect had been apprehended, he noted.

“It could have easily turned into another situation if I wasn’t who I am,” he said. “And the point here is being black in America, is just that, being black in America.”

Pharoah went on to say that black people should not have to fear leaving their house to go to the grocery store or take a jog down the street. He said the incident was especially jarring since he grew up in a home where his parents tried to shelter him from the effects of racism and police brutality.

The Instagram post displayed surveillance video of the incident, which showed officers holding Pharoah to the ground while he lay motionless on the sidewalk, then handcuffing him and pulling him back up to his feet.