MEAWW.COM / NEWS / CRIME & JUSTICE

Daniel Penny: Former Marine who killed Jordan Neely could face manslaughter charges, says expert amid ongoing backlash

Daniel Penny's attorneys claimed that Jordan Neely had been aggressively threatening Penny and other passengers when they acted to protect themselves

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK CITY: Daniel Penny, the US marine veteran who was seen on video placing Jordan Neely in a chokehold on the New York City subway before the latter died on Monday, May 1, could face a manslaughter charge or a criminally negligent homicide charge, an expert recently told The Guardian. The opinion comes amid the online backlash surrounding the delay in the revelation of Penny’s name.

Penny is yet to be formally charged with a crime. His attorneys claimed that Neely had been “aggressively threatening” Penny and other passengers when their client and his fellow travelers “acted to protect themselves” as per The Guardian. “Daniel never intended to harm Mr Neely and could not have foreseen his untimely death,” attorneys Steven Raiser and Thomas Kenniff said in a statement.

READ MORE

Christie Neely: NYC subway victim Jordan Neely's mother was choked to death by her boyfriend

Jordan Neely: Man killed on NYC subway had criminal record of 42 prior arrests

A source with direct knowledge of the case first confirmed Penny’s identity as a 24-year-old man from West Islip, Long Island. His attorneys later provided his name to news outlets after social media users widely circulated it online by taking information from people who recognized Penny in Neely’s chokehold video. Twitter user @/kdgriffit claimed that Penny was the son of retired NYPD captain Daniel Penny Sr but others argued it was misinformation.

‘This whole situation is awful’

Joseph Giacalone, a retired New York police detective sergeant and a professor of Criminal Justice at John Jay College, told The Guardian that the possibility of bringing criminal charges against Penny would be determined by authorities by analyzing whether keeping Neely in a chokehold for several minutes went “too far.” “You cut off someone’s oxygen supply for that long, and you could cause serious injury or death,” he said.

While people in New York are legally allowed to use deadly force if they reasonably believe they are facing an imminent and mortal threat, Giacalone said mentally ill people making remarks similar to Neely is an event of daily occurrence on the subway and does not usually lead to deadly encounters. Giacalone said he believed the video showing Neely being placed in the chokehold could make authorities consider a manslaughter or negligent homicide charge.

While manslaughter and negligent homicide charges are issued for unintentional killings that are still considered illegal, those are less serious than a murder charge which is given for intentional and unjustified killing. Giacalone also opined that Neely’s death exposed the city’s inability to provide adequate social and mental health services to those in need of professional help. He said that each of the 40 previous times when cops said Neely was arrested were opportunities to “get him the help he needed” but city officials wasted those chances. “This whole situation is awful in so many aspects,” Giacalone added.

‘Absolutely scandalous’

In the wake of Neely’s death, some social media users took to Twitter to call out those who apparently attempted to hide Penny’s name. “So many people hid this name: Daniel Penny. So many complicit. In city and state government. In media. So many. Even writing up his military honors *without naming him*. Both sidesing a lynching. Slandering the victim with their "no angel" bullsh*t. Absolutely scandalous,” said one user.

“I do find it strange that people (including news orgs) wanted to imply that it was heroism, while simultaneously hiding the identity of the "hero." This implies a severe lack of criticality. Paradoxically doing both at once could only mean trouble,” added another. “I’m so surprised that it took this long to find him. I’ve seen people found in minutes on this app but this guy took days? I don’t understand it at all,” a third user commented.

“And now we know why they spent so much effort trying to hide the murderer’s name. Daddy’s a NY State cop. 30 year veteran,” one user claimed. One said, “Why dont people understand that even if he was "no angel", arrested for assault, etc. it's still not OK to murder him. He never did anything worthy of a death sentence!” while another added, “White privilege is a hell of a drug.”

‘Something has to be done’

On Monday, May 1, Neely was reportedly yelling about being hungry and ready to die while traveling on a train. A video footage later showed passengers pinning down Neely and Penny putting him in a chokehold. Officials arrived at the scene to find Neely unconscious before he was pronounced dead at the hospital. His death was ruled a homicide.

Penny was released without being booked after being detained for questioning. The US Marine Corps later released a statement revealing Penny served in the Marines for four years since 2017 and earned the rank of sergeant as well as the occupational specialty of rifleman. He was last assigned to Camp Lejeune in North Carolina and reportedly received various accolades for his service.

Neely’s father, Andre Zachary, told the New York Daily News he wishes to see Penny indicted. “I just want something to be done,” Zachary said. “Something has to be done,” he added. Meanwhile, Penny’s attorneys expressed condolences to Neely’s family in a statement while also mentioning his “history of violent and erratic behavior.” “For too long, those suffering from mental illness have been treated with indifference,” the statement read. “We hope that out of this awful tragedy will come a new commitment by our elected officials to address the mental health crisis on our streets and subways,” it added.

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.