The man behind the popular TV show “America’s Most Wanted” has publicly denounced the trial against Daniel Penny as a “travesty.”
John Walsh, who founded “America’s Most Wanted” after his own son was kidnapped and murdered, appeared on Fox News Wednesday night to discuss the shocking murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City. But before discussing that subject, Walsh said he wanted to talk about the Penny trial.
Penny is on trial for the death of Jordan Neely, a mentally ill homeless man who was allegedly threatening passengers on a New York City subway train.
“I just want to talk to you about [the] Daniel Penny trial,” Walsh said when Fox host Jesse Watters asked him about the murder of Thompson. “It’s the biggest travesty in the history of this country. That guy’s a hero.”
Walsh then explained that there were eight murders on NYC’s subway this year, saying that they were up “60%.”
“And here we’ve got a Marine risking his life to jump on a guy,” Walsh said. “And the victim, Jordan Neely, he’s a mentally ill guy, been arrested 27 times. The whole society let him down.”
“We’re the richest, most powerful country on the planet. We couldn’t get this guy help. And then they try to turn it into a race thing,” Walsh added, referring to Assistant District Attorney Dafna Yoran alleging that race played a factor in Penny’s decision to subdue Neely.
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Walsh said Penny was a hero for protecting the other passengers on the train, who testified that Neely was threatening them and that they feared for their lives.
“He should get a hero’s award,” Walsh said.
“I have a son who lives in Brooklyn he says, ‘Dad, those of us that can afford Uber do it, but the people on the subway are people who can’t,’” Walsh added. “The dishwashers and the people coming into the city … it’s a horrible thing what the city of New York is doing to this guy. The DA’s office really needs to be held accountable.”
Penny is charged with second-degree manslaughter and a lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide. Jurors can find him guilty of one of the charges, or acquit him of all charges. If he’s found guilty of second-degree manslaughter, he faces up to 15 years in prison. If found guilty on the lesser charge, he faces up to four years.
Jury deliberations continue on Friday.
