NEW YORK — Daniel Penny was found not guilty of criminally negligent homicide in the Choking death of Jordan Neely in a New York subway train in 2023.
Penny, a 26-year-old Marine veteran, pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide.
The judge dismissed the charge of manslaughter On Friday, jurors said they could not reach a unanimous decision. The jury could only consider the negligent homicide charge if Penny was cleared of involuntary manslaughter.
About 15 protesters lined up outside the courthouse Monday, chanting “justice for Jordan Neely.” Inside, Penny’s defense team asked for a mistrial and was again denied.
Word of the verdict came after jurors deliberated for more than 20 hours. Penny seemed to smile as her lawyers hugged each other.
Alice Gainer of CBS News New York was inside the courtroom, where she reported that chaos ensued after the verdict was announced. Some clapped in support of Penny, while Neely’s father had to leave the room because he was standing up and swearing.
Penny faced a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison for manslaughter, or four years for negligent homicide. There was no minimum sentence.
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To be convicted of manslaughter, prosecutors had to prove:
- Penny caused Neely’s death
- That he did it recklessly
- That it was not justified
To be convicted of criminally negligent homicide, prosecutors had to prove:
- Penny caused Neely’s death
- That he did it with criminal negligence
- That it was not justified
The death of Jordan Neely
Police and witnesses said Neely, 30, boarded an F train in SoHo on May 1, 2023 and began shouting, throwing objects and making threats. Penny, a passenger on the train, approached Neely from behind and tried to detain him.
The video shows Penny holding Neely in a chokehold on the train floor for several minutes until Neely stopped moving. After police arrived, officers administered Narcan to Neely, performed CPR and used an AED, but were unable to resuscitate him. Neely was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police said Neely did not have any weapons on him.
A forensic pathologist ruled Neely’s death, a homicide three days latercaused by neck compression. Toxicology reports showed Neely had synthetic marijuana in his system at the time of his death.
Neely was a street performer and Michael Jackson impersonator who was homeless and had struggled with mental illness after the murder of his mother in 2007.
The video of Penny holding Neely in a chokehold was widely shared online. Neely’s death triggered protests in New Yorkwith a lot raising concerns about the need for better mental health care in town and Neely’s family demanded Penny’s arrest.
Penny surrendered on May 12, 2023 and was initially charged with second-degree manslaughter and released on $100,000 bail. He was arrested in June and pleaded not guilty to criminally negligent homicide and second-degree manslaughter.
Penny, a Marine veteran, defended his actions saying he was trying to protect the other passengers on the train by restraining Neely.
Fatal strangulation trial on New York subway
End of October 2024, a jury of 12 people and four alternates were selected and sworn in. They included seven women and five men, including at least seven white people, one Hispanic, one Filipino, one Black and one person of Middle Eastern descent.
The trial began on November 1.
The pursuit argued in their opening statements that Penny, although he had good intentions, recklessly used excessive force without trying other means to deescalate the situation. The defense, meanwhile, argued that Penny was protecting the other passengers and that there was no other way to deescalate the situation due to Neely’s behavior.
Jurors heard testimony from several witnesses, including police officers, MTA employees, train passengers And a passerby who helped Penny hold Neely. Penny’s Marine Corps Martial Arts Instructor And the forensic pathologist who performed Neely’s autopsy also spoke. The defense called Penny’s mother and the platoon sergeants as character witnessesin the company of a forensic doctor who said he disagreed with the cause of death given by the medical examiner.
Jurors began their deliberations last Tuesday. They sent two notes back to the judge. The first requested a rereading of part of the judge’s instructions. The second note asked the judge if they could return to deliberate on Wednesday, the day they normally would have had off. The judge approved this request.
Jurors sent another note Wednesday morning, asking to see a police body camera video compilation of the incident, as well as footage of Penny’s interview at the police station. Jurors also requested a replay of the medical examiner’s cross-examination.
On Friday morning, the fourth day of deliberations, they sent a note to the judge saying they could not reach a unanimous verdict on the manslaughter charge.
