Daniel Penny, who was acquitted of causing the death of Jordan Neely on a New York City subway, is seeking the dismissal of a civil lawsuit filed by Neely’s father.
Andre Zachery filed <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/12/05/us-news/jordan-neelys-father-sues-daniel-penny-as-nyc-jury-deliberates-verdict-for-subway-chokehold-death/?utm_campaign=nypost&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=twitter" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a lawsuit</a> against Penny in December, shortly before a jury found Penny not guilty of criminally negligent homicide, demanding “judgment awarding damages in a sum which exceeds the jurisdictional limits of all lower Courts which would otherwise have jurisdiction.” Penny’s attorneys are seeking to get that lawsuit dismissed, Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/daniel-penny-demands-dismissal-civil-lawsuit-from-jordan-neely-father.amp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
Zachery, who was not a part of Neely’s life, alleged that Penny caused the death of his son and should pay him for it.
&#8220;All injuries or damages sustained by Plaintiff as alleged in the Verified Complaint, if any, were caused in whole or in part by the culpable conduct, negligence, carelessness, and lack of care on the part of Plaintiff, and any recovery against this Defendant must be diminished in proportion to Plaintiff’s relative wrongdoing, fault, misfeasance, malfeasance, failure to exercise due care and/or other culpable conduct,&#8221; Penny’s attorneys wrote in response to the lawsuit, Fox reported.
Penny’s attorneys, Steven Raiser and Thomas Kenniff, also released a statement defending Penny against the charges brought against their client in what they described as the “largest and most resourced” district attorney’s office in America.
&#8220;The result was a full acquittal and a verdict that underscored New Yorkers’ belief in their right to defend themselves and their neighbors from random violence,&#8221; the attorneys told Fox News Digital. &#8220;We are committed to defending this ill-conceived civil action brought by Jordan Neely’s estranged father with the same vigor with which we defended the criminal case.&#8221;
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Penny was found <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-daniel-penny-found-not-guilty" target="_blank" rel="noopener">not guilty</a> on December 9, after the district attorney’s office dropped its second-degree manslaughter charge against him when the jury failed to return a verdict.
Jurors were initially tasked with determining whether Penny “recklessly” caused the death of Neely by using the chokehold – or second-degree manslaughter – or if he was guilty of criminally negligent homicide, a lesser charge that carried a maximum sentence of four years in prison. According to court documents, the lesser charge required the jury to determine Penny failed to recognize Neely’s life was at risk as he held him in the chokehold.
The manslaughter charge was dismissed the Friday before the jury reached its final verdict, and it took them less than an hour to return a not guilty verdict for the lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide.

Daniel Penny

Daniel Penny Seeks Dismissal Of Civil Lawsuit Filed By Jordan Neely’s Father

Daniel Penny Seeks Dismissal Of Civil Lawsuit Filed By Jordan Neely's Father

Courts

Jordan Neely

Lawsuit

U.S.

CNN Republican commentator <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/scott-jennings" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Scott Jennings</a> got into a brief dust-up with guest host Audie Cornish on Tuesday, after she implied that her compassion for Jordan Neely was rooted in her Christianity rather than her political beliefs.
The conversation came about in reaction to Monday&#8217;s not guilty verdict in the New York-based case against Marine Corps veteran Daniel Penny, who subdued a violent and threatening Neely using a choke hold. Though Neely was alive when police first arrived on the scene, he later died, and Penny was charged in relation to his death.
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GOP strategist <a href="https://twitter.com/ScottJenningsKY?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ScottJenningsKY</a> didn&#39;t hold back when Audie Cornish invoked religion to call Jordan Neely a victim. <a href="https://twitter.com/DailyCaller?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DailyCaller</a> <a href="https://t.co/ZCOC7QuBot">pic.twitter.com/ZCOC7QuBot</a>
&mdash; Harold Hutchison (@HaroldHutchison) <a href="https://twitter.com/HaroldHutchison/status/1866860075341529224?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 11, 2024</a></blockquote>
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The discussion began with guest Geraldo Rivera, who argued that the case against Penny had been political from the start.
Cornish interrupted him, asking what he would say &#8220;to the parents of a victim who dies in this circumstance,&#8221; suggesting that Neely — who, by multiple accounts, had been threatening other subway passengers and behaving erratically before Penny and at least one other passenger stepped in to stop him.
&#8220;You keep referring to Neely as the victim,&#8221; Jennings said then, adding, &#8220;I think Penny is the victim in this case, and I think the people on the train are the victims.&#8221;
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&#8220;I have a tendency to call the people who die a victim,&#8221; Cornish interjected. &#8220;We have different ideas about that. But to my mind, someone lost a child and I&#8217;m always going to feel for that person — that&#8217;s just how I&#8217;m built, it&#8217;s like a Christian thing. But the reason why I&#8217;m asking —&#8221;
&#8220;Are you saying I&#8217;m not a Christian?&#8221; Jennings pushed back. &#8220;Is that your assertion?&#8221;
&#8220;I&#8217;m not at all,&#8221; Cornish back-pedaled. &#8220;I just want to make sure that you understand it&#8217;s a values-based comment, not a political one.&#8221;
Jennings pushed back again: &#8220;Are you saying I don&#8217;t have any values?&#8221;
The rest of the panel jumped in to defend Cornish, telling Jennings that was not what she meant.
&#8220;He needs a clip for the internet,&#8221; Cornish claimed, turning to smile directly at the camera.
Rivera rounded out the discussion, noting that it was important to remember that everyone has family, but that Neely being someone&#8217;s son did not make him an innocent in the situation at hand.

Scott Jennings Corners CNN Guest Host Over Penny Case: ‘You Keep Referring To Neely As The Victim’

Scott Jennings Corners CNN Guest Host Over Penny Case: 'You Keep Referring To Neely As The Victim'

Media

Politics

Scott Jennings

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/naacp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NAACP</a> attempted to use Marine veteran Daniel Penny&#8217;s acquittal to stir racial unrest on X, and immediately got hit with a community note laying out several key points explaining why race had absolutely no bearing on that case.
Penny was acquitted on Monday in the death of Jordan Neely, a black man who had a relatively impressive rap sheet before he began behaving erratically and threatening people on a New York City subway. Penny stepped in to stop him, briefly placing Neely in a choke hold — and while he died later, Neely was alive when police arrived on the scene.
The NAACP shared a CNN report on the acquittal and added the following commentary: &#8220;The acquittal of Daniel Penny in the death of Jordan Neely has effectively given license for vigilante justice to be waged on the Black community without consequence. It&#8217;s a painful reminder of the inequities in our justice system. Jordan deserved compassion. Instead, he was met with violence. We stand with his family in calling for accountability.&#8221;
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The acquittal of Daniel Penny in the death of Jordan Neely has effectively given license for vigilante justice to be waged on the Black community without consequence.
It&#39;s a painful reminder of the inequities in our justice system. Jordan deserved compassion. Instead, he was met… <a href="https://t.co/JOdxjZJXBi">https://t.co/JOdxjZJXBi</a>
&mdash; NAACP (@NAACP) <a href="https://twitter.com/NAACP/status/1866177083485073754?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 9, 2024</a></blockquote>
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The response from Community Notes was as thorough as it was quick:
&#8220;Daniel Penny did not act alone in defending himself and others from Neely. A black man can be clearly seen assisting Penny to subdue Neely. A black woman testified in defense of Penny. There is no evidence that Penny was motivated by race,&#8221; the note read — and included video showing proof that at least one black man had aided Penny in restraining Neely.
&#8220;It should be noted that another black man attempted to restrain Jordan Neely,&#8221; the video was captioned. &#8220;This event was not racial nor was the verdict. If you wanted to show compassion to Mr. Neely it should&#8217;ve [come] during the 100+ prior times he was arrested. He was a danger to his community. Just a fact.&#8221;
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It should be noted that another black man attempted to restrain Jordan Neely
This event was not racial nor was the verdict. If you wanted to show compassion to Mr. Neely it should&#39;ve came during the 100+ prior times he was arrested. He was a danger to his community. Just a fact. <a href="https://t.co/zqlkTHl1GD">pic.twitter.com/zqlkTHl1GD</a>
&mdash; Clint Russell (@LibertyLockPod) <a href="https://twitter.com/LibertyLockPod/status/1866195560681583005?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 9, 2024</a></blockquote>
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Sage Steele also responded to the NAACP, adding, &#8220;Stop. Please read/stop ignoring the facts of the case. Not only is your claim of racism inaccurate, it’s divisive, and it causes the @NAACP to lose even more credibility, which affects those in need when racism is actually taking place.&#8221;
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Stop. Please read/stop ignoring the facts of the case. Not only is your claim of racism inaccurate, it’s divisive, and it causes the <a href="https://twitter.com/NAACP?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NAACP</a> to lose even more credibility, which affects those in need when racism is actually taking place. <a href="https://t.co/db2JNNN0lF">https://t.co/db2JNNN0lF</a>
&mdash; Sage Steele (@sagesteele) <a href="https://twitter.com/sagesteele/status/1866207071966015669?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 9, 2024</a></blockquote>
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NAACP Slapped With Brutal Community Note For Using Daniel Penny Acquittal To Race-Bait

NAACP

Race

Racism

Despite the traumatic ordeal <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/attorney-speaks-out-patrons-celebrate-daniel-penny-at-nyc-bar-after-acquittal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Daniel Penny</a> has endured at the hands of Democrat <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/heres-why-the-state-dropped-top-charge-in-daniel-penny-case-and-why-defense-is-calling-foul" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg</a>, the U.S. Marine veteran says he has no regrets about stepping in to help save others on the New York City subway.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-daniel-penny-found-not-guilty" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Penny was acquitted</a> on Monday of criminally negligent homicide in the death of Jordan Neely, a troubled man with mental health issues and a lengthy rap sheet who allegedly threatened people on the F Train.
&#8220;I&#8217;m not a confrontational person,&#8221; Penny told Fox News co-host Jeanine Pirro, a former district attorney. &#8220;This type of thing is very uncomfortable &#8212; all this attention and limelight is very uncomfortable, and I would prefer without it. I don&#8217;t want any type of attention or praise, and I still don&#8217;t.&#8221;
However, Penny said he knew he had to step in to help protect others on the subway after Neely&#8217;s alleged threats.
&#8220;The guilt I would have felt if someone did get hurt, if he [Neely] did do what he was threatening to do, I would never be able to live with myself,&#8221; the 26-year-old explained. &#8220;I&#8217;ll take a million court appearances and people calling me names and people hating me just to keep one of those people from getting hurt or killed.&#8221;
Penny also told Pirro that there were politics involved in the case, alluding to DA Alvin Bragg. Notably, Bragg filed charges against Penny 10 days after the incident, seemingly in response to racial protests on the subway. Many viewed the indictment as a political move, and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/givesendgo-campaign-raises-more-than-2-million-for-daniel-penny" target="_blank" rel="noopener">offered financial support and prayers for Penny</a>.
The full interview with Penny will air Wednesday on Fox Nation.
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WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
JUST IN: Daniel Penny says he has zero regrets, says he couldn&#8217;t live with the guilt if someone was hurt on the subway by Jordan Neely.
Penny is an even better person than I thought.
The Marine said he would do a million court appearances if it meant saving someone on the… <a href="https://t.co/swNcYWXGpN">pic.twitter.com/swNcYWXGpN</a>
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) <a href="https://twitter.com/CollinRugg/status/1866608217503175008?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 10, 2024</a></blockquote>
Penny is not in the clear yet. Last week, Neely&#8217;s father, Andre Zachery, filed a civil lawsuit at the New York Supreme Court accusing Penny of assault, battery, and causing his son’s death through “negligence, carelessness and recklessness.” The suit does not specify any specific amount of money. 
Alternatively, Arizona Rep. Eli Crane (R) is planning to <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/daniel-penny-tapped-congressional-gold-medal-house-gop-lawmaker">introduce</a> a resolution to give Penny the Congressional Gold Medal for his actions on the subway protecting fellow riders.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/attorney-speaks-out-patrons-celebrate-daniel-penny-at-nyc-bar-after-acquittal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Attorney Speaks Out, Patrons Celebrate Daniel Penny At NYC Bar After Acquittal</a>

Couldn’t ‘Live With Myself’: Daniel Penny Says He Has No Regrets After Stepping In To Help Others

New York City

Daniel Penny Acquitted In Trial Over Death Of Jordan Neely On NYC Subway

Is This The End Of The BLM Era?

Anti-Racism

Court

Health Care

Matt Walsh

Murder

Opinion

Social Justice

Subway

White Supremacy

Woke Culture

Alongside his attorneys, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-daniel-penny-found-not-guilty" target="_blank" rel="noopener">U.S. Marine veteran Daniel Penny</a> celebrated his acquittal Monday afternoon at a bar in Manhattan while surrounded by security.
Penny, 26, was on trial for the death of Jordan Neely, whom Penny restrained on the NYC subway last year after witnesses said Neely threatened passengers.
<a href="https://nypost.com/2024/12/09/us-news/daniel-penny-celebrates-not-guilty-verdict-with-lawyers-at-nyc-bar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Photos</a> taken by the New York Post show Penny smiling inside the bar, flanked by his attorneys, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-daniel-penny-lawyer-talks-strategy-ahead-of-chokehold-death-case" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Thomas Kenniff</a> and Steven Raiser. The images show smiling patrons whipping out their phones to take photos of Penny.
Penny did not speak to reporters other than to respond that he was doing &#8220;great&#8221; after the verdict.
During the trial, Penny showed little emotion. However, at one point, he disapprovingly shook his head as the prosecution suggested he was racist. He also reportedly locked eyes with jurors after the not guilty verdict was read, giving a smile and a nod.
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<a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DDXcRikvlgQ/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Thomas Kenniff (@kenniffthelawyer)</a>
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Kenniff <a href="https://www.fox26houston.com/news/daniel-penny-celebrates-not-guilty-verdict-nyc-bar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> reporters on Monday that Penny would now try to &#8220;get his life back together&#8221; after the long ordeal.
&#8220;A situation like this, we savor the victory but all the harm that has been done to him just doesn’t vanish,&#8221; the attorney said. &#8220;That’s true of anyone who is falsely accused.”
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Kenniff said he wasn&#8217;t surprised by the verdict since his client is innocent but said the process was filled with anxiety.
“I’m not surprised in the sense that Day 1 we knew that we believed he would be exonerated because the evidence overwhelmingly supported that,” he said, the Post reported. “When you’re in the midst of it, five days of deliberation, it would be inhuman not to be nervous, not to have anxiety. Were we surprised by how it came down, when it came down, the moment it came down? Sure. But were we surprised by the result? No.”
Last week, Judge Maxwell Wiley controversially agreed with the prosecution&#8217;s request to dismiss the state’s top charge of second-degree manslaughter, which carries up to 15 years behind bars, in the middle of jury deliberations. This left only the lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide for the jury to deliberate on Monday. It took the jury about one hour before it returned to the courtroom with the not guilty verdict. 
When the verdict was read, Neely’s father, Andre Zachery, glared at someone who applauded and <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/daniel-penny-trial-jury-reaches-verdict-subway-chokehold-case" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>, “Are you trying to f***ing get killed?” Additionally, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/09/nyregion/daniel-penny-not-guilty-jordan-neely.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hawk Newsome</a>, a co-founder of Black Lives Matter of Greater New York, said while looking at Penny, “It’s a small world, buddy.&#8221;
Moreover, outside the courthouse on Monday, Newsome called for &#8220;black vigilantes&#8221; to act, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/blm-leader-calls-for-black-vigilantes-following-daniel-penny-verdict" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Wire</a> highlighted.
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“We need some black vigilantes!”
New York BLM leader Hawk Newsome after Daniel Penny’s acquittal.<a href="https://t.co/lsz5QCphhn">pic.twitter.com/lsz5QCphhn</a>
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/1866189776044642515?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 9, 2024</a></blockquote>

Celebrity Sightings In New York – November 19, 2024

Attorney Speaks Out, Patrons Celebrate Daniel Penny At NYC Bar After Acquittal

Attorney Thomas Kenniff Speaks Out, Patrons Celebrate Daniel Penny At NYC Bar After Acquittal

New York

Big breaking news today. In the trial we’ve been following very closely, Daniel Penny, the man who stepped up to protect a subway car full of passengers from a violent, drug-addled vagrant, has been found not guilty. He is a free man. Justice has prevailed.
In spite of all that was stacked against him, in a trial that never should have happened, Daniel Penny will walk free. He should be awarded the Medal of Freedom for the courage he showed on that train that day — and maybe, with Trump coming in, that may still happen — but for now he will have to settle for, if not the Medal of Freedom, than freedom itself. 
Here’s Newsmax breaking the news:
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BREAKING NEWS: Jury finds Daniel Penny not guilty of negligent homicide. <a href="https://t.co/AhaucyvGQz">pic.twitter.com/AhaucyvGQz</a>
&mdash; NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) <a href="https://twitter.com/NEWSMAX/status/1866160590047367618?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 9, 2024</a></blockquote>
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This is, of course, a major victory for justice, fairness, and the rule of law. But we should not succumb to the temptation to just move on, let bygones be bygones, and forget about the injustice and persecution Penny suffered, as if the not guilty verdict means there is no harm and no foul. Penny’s acquittal is a credit to the jury, which ultimately made the right choice, in spite of the media pressure and violent threats from the crazed mob of BLM protesters outside and around the country. But justice is happening here in spite of the court system in New York. In spite of the corrupt, far-Left prosecutor. And in spite of the judge. 
So, let’s go back and review what happened just in the last couple of days, before this verdict was decided. There was an attempt — a rather desperate one, at the last minute — to rig this trial once and for all against Penny. It failed. But we should remember it, and talk about it. And before we do, I want you to remember back to the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse, when one of the arguments we heard — over and over again — was that Rittenhouse had unlawfully carried a firearm across state lines. PolitiFact published a whole &#8220;fact check&#8221; <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/media/politifact-kyle-rittenhouse-fact-check" target="_blank" rel="noopener">asserting</a> it was false to claim that Rittenhouse had any legal right to possess his AR-15 in Kenosha. Don Lemon, meanwhile, claimed that Rittenhouse was a &#8220;white teenager who crossed state lines with an AR-15-style rifle.&#8221; Joe Scarborough said, &#8220;He crossed state lines with an AR-15.&#8221; 
Various members of Congress made the same claim, clearly implying that there was something sinister — even illegal — about Kyle Rittenhouse possessing and transporting his firearm.
Ultimately the entire narrative fell apart — and not just because Kyle Rittenhouse never actually crossed state lines with an AR-15. Shortly before jury deliberations began in Rittenhouse&#8217;s murder trial, the prosecution was forced to admit that, under Wisconsin law, Kyle Rittenhouse had every legal right to possess his rifle. That&#8217;s because the rifle barrel of Rittenhouse&#8217;s AR-15 was longer than 16 inches, which is the minimum barrel length that Wisconsin state law allowed. So with very little fanfare, after months of lying by the press, the judge dismissed the gun charge against Rittenhouse before the jury could even consider it.
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That&#8217;s the normal procedure that occurs in a criminal trial before the judge sends the jury to deliberate. It&#8217;s the kind of thing that happens when the judge is interested in a fair trial, as the Rittenhouse judge clearly was. Before the jury gets the case, there&#8217;s an effort to make sure that the jury is considering a specific slate of charges that are well-founded in the law. You want to clarify exactly what charges the defendant is facing, prior to sending the jury away to deliberate. 
Otherwise — if you start removing or adding charges after deliberations have begun — then you risk confusing the jury and sending signals that are obviously unfair to the defendant. This is the kind of thing that fair prosecutors and fair judges do everything they can to avoid.
What happened in the Daniel Penny case on Friday, on the other hand, demonstrates once again that neither the judge nor the prosecutors were remotely concerned about basic principles of fairness. Fortunately the jury was, but they weren’t. So, after several days of deliberation in the Penny case, the jury announced that it was deadlocked on the second-degree manslaughter charge, which requires the prosecution to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Penny deliberately disregarded a serious risk of causing death to Jordan Neely, and that Penny did not act in self-defense.
In response, the judge sent the jury back for some more deliberations to make sure they were deadlocked. This is called an &#8220;Allen charge&#8221; or a &#8220;dynamite charge,&#8221; and it&#8217;s normal in many jurisdictions when a jury says that it can&#8217;t reach a verdict, including New York. The idea is to remind jurors that it&#8217;s important that they try to reach a unanimous verdict if at all possible, without forcing them into finding one. 
And then after receiving this &#8220;Allen charge,&#8221; the Penny jury confirmed that, indeed, they were deadlocked on the first count. The jury did not return any verdict on the lesser-included charge of criminally negligent homicide, which requires that the prosecution prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Penny should have known he was posing some deadly risk to Jordan Neely, even if he didn&#8217;t deliberately and consciously ignore that risk. It also requires that the prosecution prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Penny was not acting in self-defense.
At this point, the appropriate thing for the judge to do would be to declare a mistrial. That&#8217;s what should happen when a jury repeatedly says they can&#8217;t reach a verdict, after deliberating for several days, and after the judge does his best to remind them of the importance of finding a verdict. Any other result risks influencing the jury, and suggesting that they should reach a certain outcome. It also happens to be inconsistent with New York law.
But instead of declaring a mistrial, the judge — whose name is Maxwell Wiley — decided to do something that, by his own admission, doesn&#8217;t have any precedent in his state. He dismissed the manslaughter charge entirely and left the criminally negligent homicide charge intact. And then he told the jurors to come back for more deliberations on Monday. Watch:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Manslaughter charge against Daniel Penny dismissed, jury asked to decide lesser charge" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/H1eXoBQ0Iow?start=114&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
What&#8217;s not captured in that CNN segment is that, by the judge&#8217;s own admission, what he was doing in the Penny case has no precedent. It&#8217;s not just lawyers and CNN commentators who are saying this. As the judge <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2024/12/06/us/daniel-penny-jordan-neely-trial-verdict/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">put it</a>, “I’ll take a chance and grant the prosecution’s application.”
Yes, the judge actually said that. He said he&#8217;ll &#8220;take a chance&#8221; and implement a novel application of criminal law by dismissing the manslaughter charge while retaining a &#8220;lesser-included&#8221; offense. He&#8217;s conducting a little legal experiment in the middle of a homicide trial. He&#8217;s throwing out the established rules, and effectively allowing the prosecution to change their strategy, after jury deliberations have already begun.
This was clearly a violation of Daniel Penny&#8217;s constitutional rights. He has the right to be treated like every other criminal defendant, under the Due Process Clause of the Constitution. But the prosecution and the judge abandoned that principle for the most flagrantly political reasons imaginable. Instead of the jury getting an &#8220;Allen charge,&#8221; they&#8217;re now being told to conduct a whole new set of deliberations, with new rules.
To give you a sense of why this was such a significant ruling, take a look at the verdict form that the jury was considering. Here it is:
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-large wp-image-841321 aligncenter" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/12/GeIoUCdXoAA5gNU-473x576.jpeg" alt="" width="473" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/12/GeIoUCdXoAA5gNU-473x576.jpeg 473w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/12/GeIoUCdXoAA5gNU-247x300.jpeg 247w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/12/GeIoUCdXoAA5gNU-768x935.jpeg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/12/GeIoUCdXoAA5gNU.jpeg 1125w" sizes="(max-width: 473px) 100vw, 473px" /></div>
It begins by stating that, if the jurors find Daniel Penny guilty of manslaughter, then they&#8217;re done. They don&#8217;t have to consider the &#8220;lesser-included&#8221; charge of criminally negligent homicide.
But then the form goes on to state that:
<blockquote>If you find the defendant not guilty of count 1, manslaughter in the second degree, for the reason that the People have failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant was not justified, then you must not consider count 2, criminally negligent homicide, and you must also find the defendant not guilty of that count.</blockquote>
The form continues:
<blockquote>If you find the defendant not guilty of count 1, manslaughter in the second degree, for some reason other than the lack of justification, then proceed to, consider, and render a verdict on count 2, criminally negligent homicide.</blockquote>
What this is saying is that, if the jurors found that Penny was justified and acted in self-defense — to protect himself or others on that subway car — then a &#8220;not guilty&#8221; verdict on the manslaughter charge means that there also should be a &#8220;not guilty&#8221; verdict on the criminally negligent homicide charge. And that&#8217;s a pretty clear logical progression. Self-defense is a total defense to both charges, not just one of them.
Now, very abruptly, the jury is being asked to throw out this whole logical progression. These instructions have basically been revised after-the-fact. Now they&#8217;re being asked to consider the charge for criminally negligent homicide in isolation.
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Again, it&#8217;s impossible to ignore the natural effect this was meant to have on the jury. The message was very clear. The judge was essentially telling the jury to compromise and convict on something.
Officially, the judge&#8217;s reasoning was that, in most other cases, there&#8217;s a, “very clear” difference between the primary charge, and the &#8220;lesser-included charge.&#8221; But he said that&#8217;s not the case in this trial. So that&#8217;s why he says he allowed the prosecution to dismiss one of the charges while keeping the other, after the jury had already deliberated.
This is a move that can politely be described as &#8220;novel,&#8221; as the defense attorney&#8217;s put it. More accurately, it&#8217;s a sleight of hand that undermines the legitimacy of the entire criminal court system. But the state of New York is evidently willing to sacrifice the legitimacy of its judicial system — whatever&#8217;s left of it, anyway — in order to punish Daniel Penny by any means necessary. And yet they still failed, because God is good, and truth wins in the end.
Not that it really needs to be said, but the point of laws — especially criminal laws — is not to be &#8220;novel.&#8221; It&#8217;s to establish rules that apply to everyone, so that they can be enforced fairly, without regard to politics. Once prosecutors start bending the rules and coming up with &#8220;creative&#8221; ways to imprison American citizens, it&#8217;s clear that they&#8217;re not actually concerned with justice. They&#8217;re activists who want to punish their political enemies. And in New York, the judges are activists too, so they go along with it.
Last week, we <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YriK2BkSaqw" target="_blank" rel="noopener">talked</a> about the prosecutor in this case, Assistant Manhattan District Attorney Dafna Yoran. Just a few years ago, she dramatically reduced the sentence of a black man who brutally killed an Asian man during an ATM robbery, because she said she felt sorry for the &#8220;trauma&#8221; in his life. She didn&#8217;t want to apply the law — which clearly applied to the assailant&#8217;s conduct — because she wanted to try out a novel concept called &#8220;restorative justice.&#8221;
In the Penny case, this same prosecutor was using a &#8220;novel approach&#8221; for a very different purpose. She decided, this time around, to go out of her way to punish a defendant in a homicide case. She employed every legal technicality in the book to throw him in prison. In fact, she came up with new technicalities that have never been attempted before. And it&#8217;s not hard to see why that is. Sure, Daniel Penny acted in self-defense, unlike the ATM robber. Sure, Jordan Neely was a menace to society, unlike the professor who was murdered while he was withdrawing $300.
But also unlike the ATM robber, Daniel Penny is white. And for that reason — and that reason alone — the jury in this case was forced to continue deliberations. The judge and the prosecutors refused to drop this case, long after it&#8217;s clear that they&#8217;re legally obligated to do so.
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Ultimately, they failed in their scheme. The whole thing backfired. Now they can’t retry Penny for the charge that was dismissed, because they dismissed after deliberations began, so double jeopardy protections apply. And obviously they can’t try again on the charge he was just acquitted of. If they’d taken the mistrial last week, they could have kept trying to throw Penny in prison. But they gambled that this maneuver would result at least in a conviction on a lesser charge, and they’d still be able to throw Penny in prison for four years and ruin his life.
That was the calculation. It didn’t pay off. They failed. They tried to railroad him, but they failed. We should never forget that. Daniel Penny surely won’t. But for now, what matters most is that he won. Justice won. And justice won in spite of the very people who are supposed to ensure that it wins.

US-JUSTICE-SOCIAL-TRANSPORT

Daniel Penny Is Not Guilty. Justice Wins In Spite Of New York’s Rigged Court System.

Daniel Penny Is Not Guilty. Justice Wins In Spite Of New York's Rigged Court System.

The Daniel Penny verdict has been met with threats by at least one high-profile activist hoping he would be convicted of killing Jordan Neely, who was threatening people on a New York City subway train last year.
After Penny was found not guilty of the criminally negligent homicide of Neely, the founder of Black Lives Matter (BLM) of Greater New York, Hawk Newsome, called on black people to attack white people in the city.
&#8220;We need some black vigilantes,” Newsome said during a press conference. “People wanna jump up and choke us and kill us for being loud? How about we do the same when they attempt to oppress us.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
“We need some black vigilantes!”
New York BLM leader Hawk Newsome after Daniel Penny’s acquittal.<a href="https://t.co/lsz5QCphhn">pic.twitter.com/lsz5QCphhn</a>
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/1866189776044642515?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 9, 2024</a></blockquote>
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The trial has also inspired vandalism.
Last week, law enforcement said that nine suspects who boarded the northbound F train at the Neptune Avenue station around 4:24 a.m. allegedly plastered the interior of the car with messages that said: “A man was lynched here,” <a href="https://www.amny.com/nyc-transit/brooklyn-f-train-protest-daniel-penny-trial/">according to AMNY</a>. The statements are believed to be a reference to Neely, who died after Penny subdued him in a chokehold to keep him from hurting other passengers.
While Neely’s official cause of death is asphyxiation, Dr. Satish Chundru, a forensic pathologist, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/chokehold-did-not-kill-jordan-neely-forensic-expert-testifies-in-daniel-pennys-defense">testified</a> for the defense that Penny’s chokehold did not result in Neely’s death.
“In your opinion, did Mr. Penny choke Mr. Neely to death?” Steven Raiser, one of Penny’s defense attorneys, asked Chundru on the stand.
“No,” Chundru replied, “The chokehold did not cause death.”
Chundru also testified that Neely’s death was the result of “the combined effects of sickle cell crisis, the schizophrenia, the struggle and restraint, and the synthetic marijuana,” Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/daniel-penny-defense-calls-forensic-pathologist-witness-stand-chokehold-did-not-cause-death">reported</a>. He said that someone high on synthetic marijuana with schizophrenia can die while involved in a struggle, even without a chokehold being used. Chundru went on to say that even if Neely hadn’t had those other health factors, he still would not have died from Penny’s chokehold.
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Chundru said he ruled the chokehold out as the cause of death because there were other factors, and he pointed out discrepancies in Neely’s records. He said that Neely’s medical records were inconsistent when it came to bruising on his neck and stated there were “almost negligible” tiny bleeding spots on his eyelids. Chundru said these discrepancies were not consistent with a fatal chokehold, the New York Post <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/11/21/us-news/jordan-neelys-cause-of-death-wasnt-daniel-penny-chokehold-but-combined-effects-of-drugs-struggle-and-schizophrenia-defense-expert/">reported</a> at the time.
Jurors deliberated most of last week on whether Penny was responsible for “recklessly” causing the death of Neely as part of a charge of manslaughter in the second degree. On Friday, they told Judge Maxwell Wiley that they <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jury-in-daniel-penny-trial-says-theyre-deadlocked-over-manslaughter-charge">could not</a> come to a unanimous decision on that count of the indictment, so Wiley allowed Assistant District Attorney Dafna Yoran to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/manslaughter-charge-against-daniel-penny-dismissed-lesser-charge-still-looms">drop the charge</a> and allow the jury to deliberate on a lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide.
When the jury returned on Monday to deliberate the lesser charge, it took them less than an hour to find Penny not guilty.

Hawk Newsome

BLM Leader Calls For ‘Black Vigilantes’ Following Daniel Penny Verdict

Black Lives Matter

Daniel Penny, who was accused of putting homeless man Jordan Neely in a fatal chokehold on a New York City subway car last year, has been found not guilty of criminally negligent homicide.
Penny, a 26-year-old Marine veteran, was found not guilty of killing Neely after the jury deliberated for nearly a week in a case that has drawn national attention.
Jurors were originally tasked with determining whether Penny “recklessly” caused the death of Neely by using the chokehold – or second-degree manslaughter – or if he was guilty of criminally negligent homicide, a lesser charge that carries a maximum sentence of four years in prison. According to court documents, the lesser charge requires the jury to determine Penny failed to recognize Neely&#8217;s life was at risk as he held him in the chokehold.
On Friday, the jury indicated it was deadlocked over the manslaughter charge, The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jury-in-daniel-penny-trial-says-theyre-deadlocked-over-manslaughter-charge">reported</a> at the time. Judge Maxwell Wiley initially told the jury to return to deliberations and find a unanimous decision, but they again said they couldn’t. At that point, the judge and Assistant District Attorney Dafna Yoran discussed the possibility of dropping the manslaughter charge and allowing the jury to deliberate on the lesser charge in an effort <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/heres-why-the-state-dropped-top-charge-in-daniel-penny-case-and-why-defense-is-calling-foul">to find a guilty verdict</a>.
When the Jury returned to work on Monday, it took them less than an hour to return a not guilty verdict for the lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide.
After the verdict was read, Penny’s side of the courtroom reportedly applauded, while the side of the courtroom supporting Neely became disruptive once again, with someone allegedly talking about killing, according to journalist Matthew Lee, who was in the room. Those in Neely’s corner also reportedly said America is “a racist country!”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Jury entering! 
Clerk: How do you find on Daniel Penny on Count 2? 
Foreperson: Not guilty. 
From Penny said, applause 
Judge: Be quiet. 
From Neely side: &#8230; gonna be killed.. 
Judge: Out. 
From Nelly side: It&#8217;s a small world, buddy.. It&#8217;s a racist country!
— Inner City Press (@innercitypress) <a href="https://twitter.com/innercitypress/status/1866158667701117154?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 9, 2024</a></blockquote>
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As the judge, jury, and attorneys entered the courtroom on Monday, multiple protest groups demonstrated outside, including one chanting &#8220;guilty&#8221; as Penny himself entered the courtroom.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
WOW: Protestors shout “Guilty, Guilty, Guilty” as Daniel Penny walks into the Courthouse.
We’ve all seen the videos—it’s clear Penny was a hero Good Samaritan, only trying to help.
The sacred American presumption of innocence has been made a mockery.<a href="https://t.co/5v88qntRLx">pic.twitter.com/5v88qntRLx</a>
— John Strand (@JohnStrandUSA) <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnStrandUSA/status/1863691850923549037?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 2, 2024</a></blockquote>
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The judge and attorneys discussed the protests, with the defense pointing out that many have been anti-Penny, with protesters chanting, &#8220;Daniel Penny, subway strangler,&#8221; and &#8220;If we don&#8217;t get no justice, they don&#8217;t get no peace.&#8221; Kenniff also asked to enter videos of the protests taken on his cell phone into the court record.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Penny&#8217;s lawyer Kenniff: The chants are &#8220;Daniel Penny, subway strangler&#8221; and &#8220;If we don&#8217;t get no justice, they don&#8217;t get no peace,&#8221; which we take as a threat against the jurors. The press conference outside the court on Friday said the same. Circuslike is not OK
— Inner City Press (@innercitypress) <a href="https://twitter.com/innercitypress/status/1866144137461784936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 9, 2024</a></blockquote>
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Crime has become a major issue in New York City following multiple high-profile attacks, including the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ceo-of-massive-health-care-company-shot-dead-in-nyc-reports?topStoryPosition=3">murder</a> of UnitedHealth CEO Brian Thompson last Wednesday. Crime in the city even brought Democrat Mayor Eric Adams to publicly defend Penny, The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-nyc-mayor-eric-adams-strongly-defends-daniel-penny-blasts-media">reported</a>.
“We’re now on the subway where we’re hearing someone talking about hurting people, killing people,” Adams said on Tuesday, referring to Neely’s threatening comments toward passengers. “You have someone [Penny] on that subway who was responding, doing what we should have done as a city.”
“Those passengers were afraid,” Adams added.
For its final witness, the defense called Brian Kemef, who works for the court clerk’s office. Kemef testified that Neely had an active warrant for his arrest relating to an alleged assault in 2021. Neely also had a history of violence, including other assaults on the subway, Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/daniel-penny-trial-defense-witness-who-claimed-chokehold-didnt-kill-jordan-neely-returns-stand">reported</a>.
Neely also was hospitalized more than a dozen times for psychotic episodes, and claimed to hear deceased rapper Tupac and the devil, The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jordan-neely-claimed-to-hear-tupac-and-devil-was-hospitalized-a-dozen-times-for-psychotic-episodes">reported</a>.
In his first police interrogation – during which he was not told Neely had died – Penny <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/video-nypd-didnt-tell-daniel-penny-that-jordan-neely-had-died-when-they-initially-interrogated-him">explained</a> that Neely had been acting “like a lunatic” before he jumped him to protect other passengers.
“Some guy came in, and he’s like with his jacket off and he’s like, ‘I’m gonna kill everybody. I’m gonna go to prison forever. I don’t care,&#8217;” Penny says in the interrogation video that was played for the court.
Penny then tells the detectives that he asked the person next to him to hold his phone, and he removed his earbuds before getting behind Neely and placing him in the hold.
“I just kind of, like, grabbed him from behind,” Penny said.
“Because he was acting like a lunatic, like a crazy person,” he continued. “So, and he was rolling around the floor. And at that point, the train stopped. I was like, ‘Someone call the cops,’ and he’s still, like rolling around, still going crazy. I had two other guys kind of help me just kind of keep him from going nuts. And yeah, that’s when you guys came.”

Daniel Penny Found Not Guilty

Crime

The prosecution in the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/daniel-penny" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Daniel Penny</a> trial on Friday successfully requested that the top charge, second-degree manslaughter, be dismissed during jury deliberations. The jury will now deliberate on the lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide, which holds up to four years behind bars.
Since the manslaughter charge potentially holds a far longer sentence, up to 15 years, the dismissal, at first glance, might seem like a good thing for Penny. But as highlighted by some legal eagles online, and, most importantly, the defense, the state&#8217;s request is a desperate move to try to secure some sort of conviction in their <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/defense-in-daniel-penny-case-says-prosecution-improperly-signaling-to-the-jury" target="_blank" rel="noopener">extremely weak case</a>.
As highlighted by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/manslaughter-charge-against-daniel-penny-dismissed-lesser-charge-still-looms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Wire</a>, the defense argued Friday that dismissing a harder charge in the midst of jury deliberations that don&#8217;t seem to be going your way is setting a dangerous precedent for prosecutors to overcharge defendants, knowing that they can maneuver last minute.
Additionally, defense argued that the state was &#8220;coercing&#8221; the jury, or illegally pressuring them for, in this case, a guilty verdict.
By viewing the jury instructions in this particular case in context with the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jurors-in-daniel-penny-case-review-crucial-video-evidence-in-ongoing-deliberations" target="_blank" rel="noopener">questions asked by the jury</a>, it&#8217;s clear the state realized they were headed for a hung jury, or worse, a full acquittal. Instead of letting that play out, they moved to put the case on life-support, hoping to squeeze out a conviction on the lower charge.
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In some cases &#8212; and in the most likely case &#8212; the second charge of criminally negligent homicide can only even be considered if the jury finds a guilty verdict for the second-degree manslaughter charge. Here are the jury instructions (emphasis added):
If you find the defendant not guilty of count 1, manslaughter in the second degree, for the reason that the People have failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant was not justified, then, you must not consider count 2, criminally negligent homicide, and you must also find the defendant not guilty of that count.
As the instructions read, if the jury finds Penny not guilty of manslaughter because the state was unable to prove that his actions weren&#8217;t justified, they also have to find Penny not guilty on count 2, rendering a full acquittal.
So instead of potentially having both charges acquitted, or end up with a mistrial by way of a hung jury, jurors are considering the second charge without the burdens from the jury instructions that helped the defense.
Notably, however, per the jury instructions, the jury could have potentially found Penny not guilty on count 1, but guilty on count 2. That would be because they found Penny not guilty on manslaughter &#8220;for some reason other than the lack of justification.&#8221;
&#8220;Look at the instructions Count 2 consideration was contingent on Count 1 deliberations,&#8221; Marina Medvin posted. &#8220;The decision to allow consideration of Count 2 removes the defense-protective obstacles from the instruction. If Penny is convicted as a result, the defense will have a field day on appeal.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Daniel Penny judge dismissed Count 1, manslaughter, after a hung jury — BUT he is going to allow the jury to consider Count 2, negligent homicide, on Monday.
Look at the instructions. Count 2 consideration was contingent on Count 1 deliberations. The decision to allow… <a href="https://t.co/ghf75ksjCM">pic.twitter.com/ghf75ksjCM</a>
— Marina Medvin 🇺🇸 (@MarinaMedvin) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarinaMedvin/status/1865138198625816590?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 6, 2024</a></blockquote>
Indeed, defense will certainly appeal if the jury comes back with a guilty verdict on count two, with a high degree of likelihood they&#8217;ll prevail since the state/judge&#8217;s move was so unusual.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/defense-in-daniel-penny-case-says-prosecution-improperly-signaling-to-the-jury" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Defense In Daniel Penny Case Says Prosecution Improperly Signaling To The Jury</a>

Here’s Why The State Dropped Top Charge In Daniel Penny Case, And Why Defense Is Calling Foul

Here's Why The State Dropped Top Charge In Daniel Penny Case, And Why Defense Is Calling Foul

The Manhattan District Attorney’s office, which is prosecuting <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/daniel-penny" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Daniel Penny</a>, has decided to drop the second-degree manslaughter charge against him, hoping jurors can come to a verdict on the lesser charge.
Jurors on Friday said they were deadlocked on whether Penny “recklessly” caused the death of Jordan Neely on a New York City subway train last May, prompting Judge Maxwell Wiley and Assistant District Attorney Dafna Yoran to discuss the possibility of dropping the manslaughter charge, journalist Matthew Lee reported.
After discussing it with her colleagues, Yoran told the judge that the DA would like to dismiss the manslaughter charge against Penny, which could have landed him up to 15 years in prison. As Lee reported, Penny’s attorneys argued that such a move would be coercing the jury, but the judge – who has been favorable to the prosecution throughout the trial – disagreed.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Penny&#8217;s lawyer Kenniff: This would be elbowing the jury, coercing them 
Judge Wiley: The DA&#8217;s proposal would resolve that. 
ADA Wu: Your Honor put it correctly. Removal of the top count, with prejudice, takes that concern away. 
Judge Wiley: What do I tell the jury?
— Inner City Press (@innercitypress) <a href="https://twitter.com/innercitypress/status/1865133839913251172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 6, 2024</a></blockquote>
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Judge Wiley then asked Yoran what he should tell the jury, Lee reported, to which she responded that the judge shouldn’t tell them that this is an acquittal on the manslaughter charge, but simply that it has been dismissed.
Penny’s attorney, Thomas Kenniff, shot back that such a tactic had not been used before, and could create a precedent where prosecutors over-charge someone with the option to withdraw the top charges if a jury cannot make a decision.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Judge Wiley: I&#8217;ll take a chance and grant the People&#8217;s application. I&#8217;m going to let them go to return and consider Count 2 on Monday. Bring them in. 
Jury entering! 
Judge: Manslaughter in the 2d degree is dismissed. You are free to consider Count 2- on Monday
— Inner City Press (@innercitypress) <a href="https://twitter.com/innercitypress/status/1865136662189162853?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 6, 2024</a></blockquote>
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After this exchange, the judge again sided with the prosecution, and told the jury they would return on Monday to deliberate on the lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide. If convicted on this charge, Penny faces up to four years in prison.
The prosecution has argued that Penny, a 26-year-old Marine veteran, held Neely in a chokehold for six minutes in May 2023, causing Neely’s death. Penny’s defense, meanwhile, has argued that there is doubt about whether Neely died from the chokehold or if he died due to his medical condition and the drugs in his system at the time of his death.
Jurors have been asking to review crucial evidence in the case, including videos from the incident and Penny’s police interrogation, during which he was not told Neely had died. They have also asked Wiley to reread the definitions of recklessness and negligence, The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/daniel-penny-verdict-watch-jury-still-asking-questions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
Jurors have also asked to be reread portions of New York medical examiner Dr. Cynthia Harris’ cross-examination, where she <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/medical-examiner-determined-jordan-neely-died-from-chokehold-after-viewing-video" target="_blank" rel="noopener">testified</a> that she made the determination Neely died due to asphyxiation based on video alone – before the toxicology report came back.

Manslaughter Charge Against Daniel Penny Dismissed; Lesser Charge Still Looms

Jurors on Friday sent a note to the judge saying they cannot reach a consensus on whether to convict Daniel Penny of “recklessly” causing the death of Jordan Neely, a homeless man who was allegedly threatening passengers on a New York City subway train last year.
The jury, which has been deliberating since Tuesday afternoon, must determine whether Penny caused Neely’s death by “recklessly” keeping him in a chokehold after frightened passengers left the train, the New York Post <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/12/06/us-news/jurors-deadlocked-in-daniel-penny-manslaughter-trial/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>, or whether his actions amounted to a lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide.
If convicted of second-degree manslaughter, Penny faces up to 15 years in prison. If convicted of the lesser charge, he faces up to four years.
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As the Post reported, if the jury cannot reach a verdict, Judge Maxwell Wiley will be required to give them an “Allen” charge, encouraging them to continue deliberations to reach a unanimous verdict on count 1 of the indictment.
The prosecution has argued that Penny, a 26-year-old Marine veteran, held Neely in a chokehold for six minutes in May 2023, causing Neely’s death. Penny’s defense, meanwhile, has argued that there is doubt about whether Neely died from the chokehold or if he died due to his medical condition and the drugs in his system at the time of his death.
Jurors have been asking to review crucial evidence in the case, including videos from the incident and Penny’s police interrogation, during which he was not told Neely had died. They have also asked Wiley to reread the definitions of recklessness and negligence, The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/daniel-penny-verdict-watch-jury-still-asking-questions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
Jurors have also asked to be reread portions of New York medical examiner Dr. Cynthia Harris’ cross-examination, where she <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/medical-examiner-determined-jordan-neely-died-from-chokehold-after-viewing-video" target="_blank" rel="noopener">testified</a> that she made the determination Neely died due to asphyxiation based on video alone – before the toxicology report came back.
The case has divided the country, with many believing Neely is the victim and others, including “America’s Most Wanted” creator John Walsh, believing Penny <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/americas-most-wanted-creator-john-walsh-calls-daniel-penny-trial-a-travesty" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is a hero</a> for protecting passengers.
On Wednesday, Neely’s father filed a lawsuit against Penny for the death of his son, the New York Post <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/12/05/us-news/jordan-neelys-father-sues-daniel-penny-as-nyc-jury-deliberates-verdict-for-subway-chokehold-death/?utm_campaign=nypost&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=twitter" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>, demanding “judgment awarding damages in a sum which exceeds the jurisdictional limits of all lower Courts which would otherwise have jurisdiction.”

Jury In Daniel Penny Trial Says They’re Deadlocked Over Manslaughter Charge

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