Daniel Penny Charged With Second-Degree Manslaughter For May 1st Homicide Of Jordan Neely Aboard F Train
Penny, a 24 year-old ex-Marine, was arraigned at NYPD’s 5th Precinct early in the morning of May 12th. He had applied a fatal chokehold to Neely, a mentally ill homeless man who had been yelling at passengers about being hungry and desperate on a northbound train. Penny was freed on a $100,000 bond pending trial.
| 15 May 2023 | 06:34
Daniel Perry putting Jordan Neely in a fatal chokehold on a northbound F Train, May 1. Photo: Juan Alberto Vazquez, Facebook (
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Daniel Penny, an ex-Marine who killed a homeless man having a mental health crisis on a northbound F train on May 1, surrendered to police early on May 12 and was charged with second-degree manslaughter. Penny was released after posting a $100,000 bond.
Penny put Jordan Neely, 30, into a chokehold after he began yelling about being hungry. He held the chokehold until Neely fell unconscious and later died of his injuries, after EMS rushing to the Broadway and Lafayette subway station were unable to revive him.
Around 8 a.m. EST on May 12, Penny pulled up to NYPD’s Fifth Precinct in a boxy Chevrolet Escalade and entered the building where he was charged. He left the building at 10:38 EST in handcuffs but was later released after posting a $100,000 bond.
Penny’s lawyers Steven M. Raiser and Thomas A. Kenniff noted in a statement that they are “confident that once all the facts and circumstances surrounding this tragic incident are brought to bear, Mr. Penny will be fully absolved of any wrongdoing.”
The killing has caused an uproar among a subset of New Yorkers, setting off protests in the streets and subways and outrage from some politicians. Mayor Eric Adams, after initially putting out what other politicians such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez deemed a tepid response, gave a speech on May 1st where he said that Neely’s “life mattered” and called his killing “a tragedy that should never have happened.” After news of Penny’s upcoming arraignment, Adams put out a statement where he further clarified: “I have the utmost faith in the judicial process, and now justice can move forward against Daniel Penny.”
Second degree manslaughter is also known as reckless homicide. It is not a murder charge, and involves proving that Penny was aware that his chokehold had the possibility of killing Neely and decided to apply it anyway. It can carry a sentence of up to 15 years in prison if a jury convicts Penny.