Daniel Penny, the former Marine who was acquitted in December of criminally negligent homicide in the death of Jordan Neely, is stepping back into public life after months of legal scrutiny and national attention.
Neely, a 30-year-old Black man struggling with homelessness and schizophrenia, died in May 2023 after Penny restrained him in a chokehold on a New York City subway train.
Witnesses said Neely had been acting erratically and threatening passengers, including a pregnant woman and high school students.
Neely had a well-documented history of physically assaulting people on the subway.
“The guilt I would’ve felt if someone did get hurt, if he did do what he was threatening to do, I would never be able to live with myself,” Penny said in an interview with Fox News following his acquittal. “I completely believed” the threats Neely was making, he added.
The trial and ultimate acquittal of Penny took 19 months.
Grand Jury Indicts Daniel Penny in Chokehold Death on New York Subway
Daniel Penny Returns to the Spotlight
Far from retreating from the public eye, the 26-year-old Penny has been embraced by several public figures and organizations.
