Former US Marine; Daniel Penny turned himself into authorities to be charged with manslaughter after he allegedly choked another train rider to death in New York City.
Jordan Neely, 30, died on May 1 in a train car, and Daniel Penny, 24, is accused of being responsible. According to the BBC, his attorneys claimed that he could not have realized that trying to restrain Neely would result in his demise.
Homeless Neely was held captive in a train car for several minutes while being pinned to the ground and shackled.
According to witnesses, he had been yelling at other metro riders and pleading for cash.
Neely was later discovered in the carriage unresponsive and sent to the hospital, where he was ultimately declared dead. The city’s medical examiner determined that his neck was compressed which caused his death.
According to the BBC, Penny was first interrogated by police before being let go the day Neely died.
However, a witness’ video of the altercation sparked protests, and the Manhattan district attorney’s office quickly opened an investigation.
The former Marine can be seen clutching Neely around the neck for two minutes and 55 seconds in the footage, which was recorded by an independent journalist aboard the train.
Just after 8:00 a.m. local time on Friday, Penny pulled up to the 5th Precinct in downtown Manhattan in a black SUV.
He did not reply or respond to any of the inquiries from the reporters gathered outside while wearing a black suit and a white shirt.
His attorney, Thomas Kenniff, claimed that his client had turned himself in voluntarily and “cognitively.”
Reporters started congregating at Manhattan Criminal Court on Friday morning, where Penny is anticipated to be arraigned later that day. If found guilty of second-degree manslaughter, he may spend up to 15 years in prison.
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A few days after Neely passed away, Penny’s attorneys issued a statement in which they claimed their client “never intended to harm Mr. Neely and could not have anticipated his untimely death.”
A tiny memorial honoring Neely has been put together across the street from the court, and others are calling for Penny to be charged.
Penny needed to be in prison, according to a statement released by Neely’s family earlier this week. Jordan matters, the family wants you to know, they declared.
Neely, a Michael Jackson lookalike who regularly performed in Times Square, was detained 42 times on suspicion of misdemeanor offenses like evading taxes, theft, and assaults on three women, according to US media sources.
According to New York City Mayor Eric Adams, the case shows how the mental health system needs to be improved in order to better safeguard individuals like Neely.