Opening statements began on Friday in the New York trial of Daniel Penny, 26, a former Marine who’s charged with manslaughter for spending minutes choking Jordan Neely, 30, a homeless man who was suffering from mental illness and threatening subway passengers in May 2023.
In a Manhattan courtroom, opposing sides of the case painted starkly different pictures, with the prosecution arguing Penny may have had understandable initial intentions to protect his fellow passengers, but took them “way too far” as he continued to wrap Neely in a chokehold after the man went unconscious and subway riders exited the train car.
