Daniel Penny Breaks Silence Following Subway Case Acquittal

Daniel Penny publicly addressed his acquittal on charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide concerning the death of Jordan Neely on a New York City subway in May 2023.

In a Dec. 10 interview with Fox News, Penny shared that he found himself in a “very vulnerable position” during his confrontation with Neely but felt it was necessary to take action.

Penny, who is 26 and served four years in the U.S. Marines, described himself as “not a confrontational person” but noted that Neely was “threatening to kill people.”

Just days before this decision, New York Supreme Court Judge Maxwell Wiley dismissed a second-degree manslaughter charge against Penny after the jury deliberated for four days without reaching a unanimous decision.

Penny had maintained a not guilty plea for both charges.

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Penny’s defense team contended during the trial that their client did not intend to kill Neely and was instead acting to protect himself and others when he applied a chokehold for nearly six minutes.

According to his lawyers, Penny intervened after Neely had a violent outburst that alarmed other passengers.

Neely, diagnosed with schizophrenia, lost consciousness following the chokehold and was later pronounced dead at a hospital. A medical examiner noted that his death resulted from “compression of the neck,” although Penny’s defense team disputed this finding.

At the time of his death, Neely had synthetic marijuana in his system and had a history of assault convictions related to subway incidents.

Neely’s supporters, including his family, argue that Penny’s response was excessive and that he should face significant charges.

The case ignited national discussions and left New Yorkers split on matters concerning homelessness and public safety.

In his Fox News interview, Penny stated he did not seek “any type of attention or praise” for his actions.

When asked about the chokehold, the ex-Marine expressed that he would “never be able to live with myself” if Neely had succeeded in carrying out his threats against other passengers.

Penny acknowledged the backlash he has received in the aftermath of the incident.

“I’ll endure a million court appearances, along with the names people call me and the hate directed at me, just to prevent even one of those passengers from getting hurt or killed,” he said.

He also took issue with unnamed city officials, whom he characterized as “self-serving,” for ignoring their role in fostering the situation leading to his confrontation with Neely.

“These are their policies, and while I don’t intend to be political or make enemies, their policies have evidently failed,” Penny commented.

“Their egos are too inflated to admit that they’ve made mistakes,” he added.

Following the acquittal, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg stated that his office had pursued the case based on the facts and evidence from start to finish.

Michael Washburn and the Associated Press contributed to this report.