Watch: Daniel Penny Speaks Out as He Celebrates Acquittal

Daniel Penny marked his acquittal of criminally negligent homicide in the death of Jordan Neely by enjoying drinks with his defense lawyers in Manhattan. A jury found him innocent after he restrained Neely in a chokehold on a subway train in May 2023, following threats made by Neely. Penny said, “It’s great.”

Penny’s attorney stated that his actions were justified and that other factors, such as Neely’s drug use and mental health issues, contributed to his death.

Defense attorney Thomas Kenniff stated, “It feels great. He’s finally got the justice he’s deserved.”

Kenniff added, “No. We think this should probably have happened on day one, but the important thing is that it happened.”

Although the jury initially deadlocked on a manslaughter charge, they ultimately reached a unanimous decision on the lesser charge.

Penny still faces a wrongful death civil suit from Neely’s father.

Co-counsel Steven Raiser said, “He’s not guilty on a few different reasons. His actions were justified. He was trying to help people on that train, and he did.”

Raiser added, “And number two, he’s not responsible for the death because the death was caused by a lot of other factors that we tried to present with a lot of clarity.”

Raiser concluded, “I’m just glad the jury was able to truly evaluate that as a potential cause of death and that Danny was justified in the actions that he took.”