© Reuters. Ex-US Marine Daniel Penny arrives at a New York City police station to turn himself in for the murder of Jordan Neely, a man ruled dead by the city’s medical examiner after he was placed in a chokehold on a subway train, in New Way.
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By Luke Cohen
NEW YORK (Reuters) – A former U.S. Marine who killed a homeless man by choking him in a New York City subway was detained at a police station on Friday and was expected to be tried for manslaughter.
A viral video showed the former Marine, known as Daniel Penny, putting 30-year-old Jordan Neely in a chokehold on May 1 while they were riding the F train in Manhattan. The coroner said Neely died from compression in the neck, but Penny’s attorneys said he did not mean to kill him.
According to witnesses, Neely, who was known to impersonate Michael Jackson on the subway system, was complaining loudly of hunger and saying he was ready to die when Benny came up behind him and grabbed him around the neck. Benny chained him to the floor of the subway car until he appeared to stop moving. Nellie later announces his death.
A Reuters witness said Penny, 24, surrendered to police at the Fifth Precinct in southeast Manhattan on Friday. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said Thursday that he will stand trial in Manhattan Criminal Court on charges of second-degree manslaughter.
A bystander’s video of Neely’s death captured national attention and revived a debate among New Yorkers about crime on the subway and what to do with the city’s growing number of homeless people.
Penney’s murder and the prosecution’s delay in charging Penny sparked protests, with some saying the incident amounted to a “lynching” and an example of “white vigilance” against people of color. Nellie was black and Penny was white.
In a statement from his legal team, Penny expressed his “condolences to those close to Mr. Neely.” The statement alleged that Neely severely threatened passengers in the subway car.
“Daniel never intended to harm Mr. Neely and could not have foreseen his untimely death,” the statement read.
Penney’s attorneys, Stephen Reiser and Thomas Kenniff, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
An attorney for Neely’s family said in a statement Monday that Benny’s actions on the train and his words show he “should be in jail.”
A spate of attacks on train commuters last year, particularly Asian Americans, prompted Adams to increase police patrols and expand access to the mentally ill on the subway system, citing soaring rates of homelessness in the wake of the pandemic.
Video circulating on social media after Neely’s death showed a man identified as Benny placing a chokehold on a man identified as Neely for more than three minutes. Two other men are seen in the video handcuffing Nellie’s arms before he limp.
Reuters could not verify the authenticity of the video.