Verdict reached: Jury finds Daniel Penny not guilty in NYC subway chokehold case
NEW YORK – A jury on Monday found former Marine Daniel Penny not guilty of criminally negligent homicide in the death of Jordan Neely, a homeless man who Penny placed in a chokehold onboard a New York City subway car last year.
Around 11:30 a.m. Monday, the jury told the judge they reached a unanimous verdict on the second count in the case. The more serious charge of second-degree manslaughter was dismissed Friday after the jury was unable to reach a verdict on it.
The case catapulted into the national spotlight after video of the chokehold went viral following Neely’s death, which a New York City medical examiner ruled was caused by “compression of the neck.” Neely suffered from schizophrenia, was high on synthetic marijuana and was shouting that he was hungry, thirsty and “fed up” seconds before Penny put him in a restraint learned during training with the Marine Corps.
In a trial that lasted more than six weeks, the prosecution argued Penny, 26, was negligent in keeping the unarmed Neely in a chokehold for about six minutes, even after he stopped resisting. The defense said Penny was defending fellow passengers after Neely threatened to kill them and acted “psychotic.”
Defense attorney Steve Raiser said Monday he wouldn’t yet comment on the case. When the first count was dropped on Friday he said his team hoped Penny could soon put the “nightmare” behind him, and lawyers could begin focusing on a civil lawsuit brought against him by Neely’s father over his son’s death.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement, “we deeply respect the jury process and we respect their verdict.” He also said it was “unacceptable” prosecutors were subjected to threats over the case, which drew public protests.
Neely had been screaming at passengers before Penny subdued him by putting him in a chokehold to prevent him from harming anyone, the defense argued. Prosecutors said Penny recklessly used too much force for too long, starving the 30-year-old former Michael Jackson tribute artist of oxygen.
Late Friday afternoon, the prosecution asked the judge to dismiss the charge of second-degree manslaughter after the jury deadlocked.
Mills said that while some are calling Penny a hero for subduing Neely after he started screaming in a subway car, “Jordan didn’t have a hero” that day.
Now, Mills said, his team will continue to seek justice for Neely through a civil lawsuit filed against Penny by Neely’s father, Andre Zachery, who was not available for comment.
Second-degree manslaughter would have required the jury to find Penny acted recklessly when he held Neely in the chokehold – that he knew Neely’s life was at risk but kept squeezing his neck, the prosecution argued.
Criminally negligent homicide would have required that the jury find that Penny failed to recognize that Neely’s life was at risk as he struggled to breathe while being held in the chokehold, according to documents filed by prosecutors.
At the start of the trial, Judge Max Wiley instructed the jury they must agree on the charge of second-degree manslaughter before they could consider the criminally negligent homicide charge. If the jury found Penny not guilty on the first charge, both would be dropped, Wiley said.
When the jury told Wiley they were deadlocked on the first count Friday, Wiley asked them to keep deliberating, but they remained stalled. That’s when prosecutors asked the judge to drop the charge of second-degree manslaughter.
Penny’s defense argued Neely was acting “psychotic” and threatened to kill people in the subway car. Penny stepped in to protect all the people on board, several of whom Neely lunged at before Penny placed him in the chokehold, defense attorney Thomas Kenniff said. Passengers had no way of knowing Neely did not have a weapon on him, Kenniff said, and several passengers feared for their lives.
The defense team also argued Penny’s chokehold alone could not have caused Neely’s death, and that Neely suffered an extreme sickle cell crisis on the train floor, blocking the flow of oxygen. However, a medical examiner testified Neely’s death was caused by “compression of the neck,” and not other health issues.
During the trial, which began with jury selection on Oct. 21, Penny was accused of recklessly disregarding the risk his chokehold would lead to Neely’s death that day on the train car floor.
Prosecutor Dafna Yoran argued Penny should have known Neely’s life was at risk because of the long chokehold. Yoran also argued Penny was unnecessarily reckless when he continued to hold Neely’s neck long after Neely stopped posing a threat to passengers.
The prosecution argued Penny did not hesitate before placing Neely in a chokehold and failed to try to defuse the situation another way. Another bystander who came to Penny’s aid offered to hold Neely’s arms down so Penny could let go of Neely’s neck, but instead, Penny kept a tight hold even after Neely’s body went limp, Yoran told jurors.
“He used far too much force for far too long,” Yoran said.
Considering the jury was deadlocked after four days of discussion, including after the judge told them to keep deliberating, it’s “peculiar” they reached a unanimous verdict of not guilty on the second charge with such speed, said Nicole Brenecki, a Brooklyn-based trial expert who has followed the case.
“I was really surprised that that’s how quickly they came back,” Brenecki, who was not involved in the case, told USA TODAY.
Brenecki said it’s possible some members of the jury changed their minds about the case over the weekend.
After the more serious charge was dropped, it likely would have been easier to reach a guilty verdict on the second charge if the jury was already heading in that direction, she said.
“Maybe the jury just decided to jump off the train and acquit,” Brenecki said, adding that Jordan Neely’s death remains an enormous tragedy.
Throughout the trial, the jury was faced with a “melting pot” of problems society is grappling with, Brenecki said, like public safety, drug use, mental illness and the homelessness crisis.
“He should have been helped, this should have been prevented,” she said. “There’s definitely a discussion and a discourse this sparked.”
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