Protesters gather at Barclays Center Arena and march to the 7th police precinct to protest the NYPD’s response to the killing of Jordan Neely in Brooklyn, New York, on May 4, 2023. | Source: ALEX KENT / Getty
UPDATED: 5:05 p.m. ET, May 11, 2023
Originally published on May 5, 2023
The man who choked an unarmed Black man to death on a New York City subway train last week is expected to turn himself in to law enforcement officials this week, according to new reports.
Daniel Penny, the 24-year-old Marine who placed Jordan Neely, 30, into a deadly chokehold for a reported 15 minutes, is expected to be charged with manslaughter on Friday, according to CNN.
The decision regarding the charge came Thursday afternoon after the DA’s office spent the weekend and much of this week going over the accounts of witnesses who were on the train, as well as video of the incident, the sources said.
If Penny does indeed surrender, his expected arrest would come nearly two weeks after eyewitnesses claim he came up behind Neely and placed the 30-year-old in a sprawling chokehold over a perceived threat during a mental health crisis.
This is a developing story that will be updated as additional information becomes available.
Original story:
Multiple social media accounts claim to have identified the man who killed a homeless Black man aboard a New York City subway train on Monday.
Reports began surfacing late Thursday night that a man named Daniel Penny from Long Island is the same person who employed a deadly chokehold on Jordan Neely on the F-line subway car in lower Manhattan.
The reports were accompanied by a number of old photos and screenshots purportedly of the reported 24-year-old Marine and at least one apparent online bio.
Independent journalist Talia Jane tweeted that “Daniel Penny, 24, a Queens resident from West Islip, NY, choked Jordan Neely, 30, on a northbound F train on Monday afternoon.”
One Twitter account claimed that some of his former classmates “recognized him” from the photos and videos of Neely being choked to death and provided “a yearbook photo from a decade ago” as apparent proof he is Penny who went to high school in West Islip, New York.
https://twitter.com/SxarletRed/status/1654307068340236291?s=20
Yet another social media account tweeted as purported proof a screenshot of a photo caption in the Daily Mail tabloid that many referred to “Penny” by name as the man “restraining Jordan Neely.”
https://twitter.com/VermilViathan/status/1654320281534578688?s=20
Media organizations have reported they have known the identity of Neely’s killer since he was briefly arrested and released without criminal charges in the hours after committing what a medical examiner’s office determined to be a homicide.
The New York Post previously reported it was able to reach the man on the phone and have a brief conversation with him. Obviously, the NYPD and by proxy, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, also know and have protected and concealed the identity of Neely’s killer.
A quick Google search of the name “Daniel Penny” and “West Islip” doesn’t turn up much information.
https://twitter.com/OLAASM/status/1654341601236250624?s=20
New York Newsday lists “Dan Penny” as a high school lacrosse player for West Islip High School in 2015, but no photo is provided.
One Twitter account tweeted screenshots from the True People Search website that listed “Daniel James Penny” as a 24-year-old from West Babylon, New York, which is also on Long Island about four miles from West Islip. A series of tweets also included a screenshot from what appears to be a now-deleted LinkedIn page for Daniel Penny, identified as an “Infantry Squad Leader at United States Marine Corps” in the “Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill Area” of North Carolina.
https://twitter.com/MikeBaggz/status/1654323970403860482?s=20
It remains unclear if there will ever be criminal charges for Neely’s homicide.
Friday marked the start of the fourth day that Neely’s killer remained a free man for what is being largely described as a vigilante murder. That timing likely has allowed him the privilege of being able to scrub his social media accounts and any other digital footprint he may have left behind.
He has also reportedly retained the legal services of a high-profile attorney, according to the New York Post, suggesting he’s prepared in case authorities try to arrest him again and charge him with a crime.
He has previously been described as a resident of the Queens borough of New York City.
Protesters have demanded justice, including a protest in Brooklyn on Thursday afternoon and others this week in the subway system and at the fateful Broadway-Lafayette subway station where first responders were unable to revive Neely after he was reportedly in a chokehold for at least 15 minutes.
This is a developing story that will be updated as additional information becomes available.
What happened?
Witnesses claim Neely was in the throes of a mental health crisis when he screamed out on the subway train that he was hungry. Others described him as acting erratically and being aggressive. None of the reports suggested he was being violent toward anybody.
When Neely reportedly took off his jacket and threw it down, the man identified in social media reports as Penny placed Neely into what would become a deadly chokehold on the subway car’s ground.
At least two men are shown on video helping the man restrain Neely, who was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital a short time later.
The response
After it was reported that Neely’s killer was released by police without any criminal charges, outrage ensued.
New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said Neely was “murdered,” prompting New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a longtime NYPD officer, to call the comments irresponsible.
What Adams did not say is that prior to his comments on Wednesday, the New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner determined that Neely’s death was a homicide caused by “compression of neck” or a “chokehold.”
To add insult to literal injury, video footage recorded at a protest on Wednesday showed NYPD appearing to arrest people for demanding justice for a person who was choked to death by a man who lacks any law enforcement authority.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said it was investigating the case.
“As part of our rigorous ongoing investigation, we will review the Medical Examiner’s report, assess all available video and photo footage, identify and interview as many witnesses as possible, and obtain additional medical records,” a spokesperson for the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said in a statement on Wednesday. “This investigation is being handled by senior, experienced prosecutors and we will provide an update when there is additional public information to share.”
The DA’s office did not have an update on Thursday.
History repeating itself
Neely’s death came more than a decade after his mother suffered a similar homicidal fate at the hands of his stepfather in 2007.
Slightly more than 16 years earlier, 14-year-old Neely was an eyewitness to the domestic violence that ultimately contributed to the murder of his own mother.
Christine Neely was 36 years old when her boyfriend choked her to death, stuffed her body in a suitcase and dumped it on the side of a highway in the Bronx.
More than four years later, an 18-year-old Jordan Neely testified during Shawn Southerland’s murder trial how he saw the couple “fight every day,” NJ.com reported at the time.
That marked a turning point for Jordan Neely, his aunt told the New York Post.
Carolyn Neely said her nephew was “a complete mess” after his mother’s murder, adding that “he has never been the same” since.
Carolyn Neely continued: “It had a big impact on him. He developed depression and it grew and became more serious. He was schizophrenic, PTSD. Doctors knew his condition and he needed to be treated for that.”
She added: “The whole system just failed him. He fell through the cracks of the system.”
SEE ALSO:
Jordan Neely’s Killer Had Help: Who Are The Men Who Aided And Abetted Deadly Subway Chokehold?
Ex-Cop NYC Mayor Adams Rips People Saying Jordan Neely Was Murdered Despite ‘Homicide’ Ruling
