Former Marine Daniel Penny, accused of strangling a homeless man to death in the New York subway in 2023, was acquitted by a popular jury this Monday of the charge of criminally negligent homicide that he faced.
The sentence for Penny, 26, could have been up to four years in prison. Last Friday, the judge in charge of the case dismissed another charge of second-degree manslaughter – for which he faced up to 15 years in prison – after the jury could not agree.
In court today was the victim’s father, Andre Zachery, who left the courtroom once the verdict was announced. Meanwhile, part of the public burst into cheers and outside the court about fifteen people shouted “justice for Jordan Neely,” local media reported.
The former Marine, who is Caucasian, was accused of putting African-American Jordan Neely in a chokehold in 2023 for about six minutes after he yelled at passengers that he was hungry and thirsty and didn’t care “about dying or going to jail.” jail”.
Neely was a 30-year-old street performer who imitated Michael Jackson in the Big Apple, had a long history of mental illness and, at the time of the events, was homeless.
Throughout the trial, which began on November 1, Penny’s defense has argued that the former military man’s intention was to “protect” the passengers, who were “frightened” by Neely’s “erratic” actions.
Daniel Penny, ex-marine acquitted of killing a homeless person, shown during the trial.
A case that divides New Yorkers
For her part, deputy prosecutor Dafna Yoran has alleged that, although Penny could have had good intentions at the time, the ex-marine ended up overreaching and ignoring “the humanity” of the victim.
The jury, made up of seven women and five men, began deliberating last Tuesday after the closing of the Prosecutor’s arguments. Penny’s case has caused division among New Yorkers, because while some consider him “a hero”, others believe he went too far and that his actions had racist overtones.
