Marine veteran charged after subway chokehold allegedly kills mentally ill man
- The jury found Daniel Penny not guilty of criminally negligent homicide related to Jordan Neely's death.
- Neely boarded a subway train in May 2023, exhibited threatening behavior, and was subsequently placed in a chokehold by Penny.
- The case has sparked national debate on issues such as race, public safety, and mental health care.
In New York City, a jury acquitted Daniel Penny of criminally negligent homicide related to the death of Jordan Neely, a homeless man with a history of mental illness. The incident occurred on May 1, 2023, when Neely boarded a subway train and began acting erratically, making threats to passengers. Witnesses testified that Neely expressed his indifference to going back to prison, which heightened concerns among the subway riders. Penny intervened and applied a chokehold on Neely for nearly six minutes, during which other passengers urged him to release Neely. After the train stopped, Neely became unresponsive, and he died shortly after the police arrived at the scene. A lengthy trial ensued, capturing national media attention and sparking widespread protests and public debate about safety, race relations, and the treatment of mental illness in society.