No criminal charges will be filed against state police in the death of a Millville man last year

Daniel King in body camera footage.

A grand jury declined to criminally indict state troopers in connection with the death of a Millville man in their custody last year.

Daniel King, 30, died of a medical event on July 9, 2023, one day after an encounter with state police.

King called police the day before his death and said he wanted to get a dirt bike from a residence on Fordville Road in Fairfield Township, Cumberland County.

But when Trooper Mark Allonardo King arrived and explained it was a civil matter. King told him he was a liar and claimed the officer was racist, according to body-worn camera footage previously released by the attorney general’s office last October.

He then began thanking the officer, with King saying he was going to get rich, the video shows. King later tells Allonardo to fight him and then repeatedly tells the soldier to shoot him. The two eventually get into a scuffle, which ends when two men nearby step in and help, each holding an arm down.

“I won, I am Jesus,” says King.

Officers Zachary Reichenbach, Nicolas Salamone and Arturo Sanchez responded to the scene, with the body camera of one of them also being released.

King was arrested and charged with aggravated assault on a police officer for allegedly causing bodily harm to Allonardo.

Back at the train station, the latest video released shows King remaining silent. When he’s tied up, he looks dazed.

Sometime after that, he suffered a fatal incident. The video of this was never released to the public.

According to the investigation, officers performed life-saving measures before EMS transported him to Inspira Medical Center in Vineland. His condition continued to deteriorate until he died at 11:37 p.m. on July 9, 2023.

His death was investigated by the Office of Public Integrity and Accountability.

According to the attorney general’s office, the investigation included witness interviews, photographs, review of video footage and autopsy results from the state medical examiner.

Evidence, including video of the incident, was presented to a state grand jury, which voted “no bill” last week, meaning no criminal charges should be filed.

A 2019 law, NJSA 52:17B-107(a)(2), requires the Attorney General’s Office to conduct an investigation into the death of a person that occurs during an encounter with a law enforcement officer acting in his or her official capacity the deceased is present in custody. It requires all such investigations to be presented to a state grand jury to determine whether the evidence supports the filing of charges against the officer or officers involved. The grand jury is informed of the elements of potential crimes, including criminal homicide, that may be alleged.

In accordance with the Independent Prosecutors Directive, a conflict check was carried out and no actual or potential conflict of interest was identified by any person in charge of the investigation. Prior to presentation to the grand jury, the investigation was reviewed by OPIA Executive Director Drew Skinner in accordance with the policies and procedures established for these presentations in the SOPs.

At the conclusion of these investigations, in accordance with the Independent Prosecutor Policy and SOPs, OPIA will determine whether a client should be referred to the appropriate law enforcement agency for administrative review in accordance with the Attorney General’s Internal Affairs policies and procedures. OPIA will monitor any resulting review and take necessary actions to ensure that the review is completed in a timely manner and that appropriate action is taken based on the results of the review.