Marine veteran surrenders in NYC to face charges
Fox News' Todd Piro reports on the charges facing Daniel Penny for the killing of Jordan Neely. 'The Five' co-host Geraldo Rivera discusses the likely next steps in the case.
NYC Marine veteran Daniel Penny was arraigned Friday in Manhattan Criminal Court for the death of Jordan Neely, who prosecutors say was "making threats and scaring people" on the subway.
"Several witnesses observed Mr. Neely making threats and scaring passengers," said Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass, as Penny, 24, stood silently, wearing a suit with his wrists cuffed behind his back.
"The defendant approached Mr. Neely from behind and placed him in a chokehold, taking him down to the ground," the prosecutor said at Penny's arraignment on one count of second-degree manslaughter.
Steinglass, who prosecuted Allen Weisselberg and the Trump Organization, said that after Neely went limp, Penny "continued to hold" him during the May 1 altercation on the northbound F train.
NYC MAYOR ERIC ADAMS SAYS ‘JORDAN NEELY DID NOT DESERVE TO DIE’
Daniel Penny leaves the 5th Precinct of the NYPD on Friday, May 12, 2023. Penny is charged in connection with the death of subway rider Jordan Neely. (Julia Bonavita/Fox News Digital)
The Marine veteran was cooperative with police and the Manhattan District Attorney's Office from the outset, the prosecutor said.
Penny's attorney, Thomas Kenniff, argued that the young man acted to protect himself and other passengers who were being threatened.
MARINE VETERAN IN NYC SUBWAY CHOKEHOLD DEATH FACES TOUGH LEGAL ROAD, EXPERTS SAY
Penny served four years in the Marines before he was honorably discharged and has been a "pillar of the community," Kenniff told Judge Kevin McGrath.
The young man is a college student and has lived in the New York City area his entire life, the lawyer noted.
Daniel Penny leaves the 5th Precinct of the NYPD on Friday, May 12, 2023. Penny is charged in connection with the death of subway rider Jordan Neely. (Julia Bonavita/Fox News Digital)
McGrath ordered Penny's release on a $100,000 bond signed off by prosecutors and secured by bondsman Ira Judelson.
Penny faces a maximum of five-to-15 years in prison if convicted. He turned himself in to police early Friday.
JORDAN NEELY'S FAMILY BLASTS MARINE VET'S LACK OF REMORSE AFTER NYC SUBWAY CHOKEHOLD DEATH
Meanwhile, a 66-year-old woman who witnessed the altercation told The New York Post she was praying for Penny.
Screenshot from bystander video showing Jordan Neely being held in a chokehold on the New York City subway. (Luces de Nueva York/Juan Alberto Vazquez via Storyful)
Neely, a 30-year-old homeless man suffering from mental illness, was "threatening passengers," she said.
JORDAN NEELY HAD HISTORY OF ATTACKS ON SUBWAY RIDERS BEFORE NYC CHOKEHOLD DEATH
"He said, ‘I don’t care. I’ll take a bullet, I’ll go to jail’ because he would kill people on the train," the woman said of Neely. "He said, ‘I would kill a motherf—er. I don’t care. I’ll take a bullet. I’ll go to jail.’"
Penny didn't step in until Neely's behavior got out of hand, the retiree said. She thanked the young man afterward for protecting the passengers.
Marine veteran Daniel Penny, right, fatally choked Jordan Neely, left, on a NYC subway after the homeless man threatened passengers. (Mills & Edwards/AllTrails)
According to freelance journalist Alberto Vazquez, who recorded the confrontation, Neely was yelling at riders.
"He started screaming in an aggressive manner," Vazquez told The New York Post. "He said he had no food, he had no drink, that he was tired and doesn’t care if he goes to jail. He started screaming all these things, took off his jacket, a black jacket that he had, and threw it on the ground."
A courtroom sketch from the arraignment of Daniel Penny on May 12th, 2023 in New York. Penny is charged after the subway chokehold death of Jordan Neely earlier this month. (Jane Rosenberg/Reuters)
The city's medical examiner ruled the killing a homicide caused by compression of the neck.
A campaign on Christian crowdfunding website GiveSendGo to pay for Penny's legal defense has raised more than $383,000.
Daniel Penny arrives at the 5th Precinct of the NYPD with his attorney, Thomas A. Kenniff on Friday, May 12, 2023. Penny was charged in connection with the death of subway rider Jordan Neely. (Julia Bonavita/Fox News Digital)
Mayor Eric Adams said at a press conference Thursday that "Jordan Neely did not deserve to die."
The caught-on-video killing has highlighted grave public safety issues in the city's subways and sparked widespread protests. The killing has divided New Yorkers, with many calling Penny a "hero" as others denounce him as a "murderer."
911 TIMELINE MOMENTS BEFORE MARINE VET PUT JORDAN NEELY IN CHOKEHOLD ON NYC SUBWAY
Outreach workers were so familiar with Neely that he was on the city's "Top 50" list – an internal roster kept by the Department of Homeless Services of people most in need of help, the local paper reported.
Neely had a history of violent attacks on subway riders – including, in 2021, punching a 67-year-old woman in the face, breaking her nose and orbital bone, court records obtained by Fox News Digital show.
Four months earlier, he allegedly slugged another woman in the face on the subway platform, the records reveal.
In 2019, he allegedly sucker-punched two men in the face on different subway platforms one month apart, breaking one victim's nose, according to the documents.
The man had more than three dozen arrests – including for exposing himself to a woman on a subway platform in 2021 and harassing a subway rider in 2020.
Jasmine Baehr contributed to this report.
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