Daniel Penny has been acquitted of criminally negligent homicide this morning in the death of Jordan Neely. Prosecutors had dropped the more serious charge of second-degree manslaughter against him last Friday, after the jury told the court that they were deadlocked and unable to reach a verdict, allowing them to then consider the lesser charge. The jury deliberated for less than two hours this morning before reaching its verdict around eleven o’clock. Legal analyst Terri Austin described people crying out in support and outrage as the verdict was read before the judge called for order, with Jordan Neely’s father reportedly removed from the courtroom.
On May 1st, 2023, 24-year-old Daniel Penny, a Marine veteran, placed Jordan Neely in a chokehold on a New York City subway after Neely boarded the train and displayed erratic and desperate behavior, screaming that he was hungry and needed a job, that he did not fear going back to jail and was ready to die. Penny held the chokehold for multiple minutes, even as Neely lost consciousness and soiled himself, and onlookers warned Penny that he was at risk of killing Neely. Penny was not initially charged by the NYPD, who released him after bringing him in for questioning. He would turn himself in days later.
Criminally negligent homicide is a class E felony which carries a maximum sentence of 4 years, while the manslaughter charge that Penny faced until last Friday could have put him behind bars for up to 15 years.
