Daniel Penny Acquitted!

In May of 2023, Daniel Penny heroically saved lives on a subway when he restrained a violent homeless man threatening people on the train. The man he apprehended and put into a chokehold that allegedly killed him, Jordan Neely, was a man with a long rap sheet that includes a history of violence. He was yelling, pacing, and threatening passengers on the F train the day Penny restrained him. Even with his known history, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg brought the case against Penny for criminally negligent homicide and manslaughter, which was dismissed last week.

After a four week trial and 20 hours of jury deliberation, the jury found that there was not proof beyond a reasonable doubt that Penny wasn’t justified in apprehending Neely that day on the subway. On December 9th, Penny was finally acquitted of all charges. And rightly so! Throughout the four weeks of trial several witnesses testified to being scared while on the train.

I love to see the justice system work the way it’s supposed to. Especially in NYC, where I had absolutely no faith that this innocent man would actually be acquitted. I also love to see Daniel Penny out on the town celebrating his victory with this legal team.