A Black man who shouted at people aboard a New York City subway train died after fellow passengers tackled him and one put him in a chokehold until he went limp, according to police officials and video of the encounter.
Jordan Neely, 30, died from compression of the neck, the city’s medical examiner determined on Wednesday.
His death has sparked outrage and protests in New York, where Mr Neely was a beloved Michael Jackson impersonator who regularly danced in Times Square.
On Monday afternoon, Mr Neely was shouting and pacing back and forth on board a subway train in Manhattan, witnesses and police said. He was said to be complaining about being hungry and thirsty.
Mr Neely was restrained by at least three people, including a 24-year-old US Marine veteran who pulled one arm tightly around his neck.
Video of the altercation, posted online by a freelance journalist, begins by showing the man lying beneath Mr Neely on the train car’s floor, holding him in a headlock for several minutes as Mr Neely tried and failed to break free.
A second passenger pinned Mr Neely’s arms while a third person held down his shoulder. Mr Neely lost consciousness during the struggle.
Emergency responders and police arrived after the train stopped at a station. He was pronounced dead at a Manhattan hospital shortly after.
The Marine veteran, who appeared to be white, was taken into custody but later released without charges.
The medical examiner’s office classified Mr Neely’s death as a homicide and the manner as a chokehold, but noted that any determination about criminal culpability would be left to the legal system.
The Manhattan district attorney’s office said it is investigating the incident.
“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,” said a spokesperson for the DA.
News and video of the incident has evoked strong reactions from New Yorkers and officials.
Some described the act as a lethal overreaction to a person who appeared to be in the throes of mental illness, while others defended the Marine veteran’s actions.
A group of protesters gathered on Wednesday afternoon in the station where Mr Neely died to call for an arrest. Kyle Ishmael, a 38-year-old Harlem resident, said the video of the incident left him feeling “disgusted.”
“I couldn’t believe this was happening on my subway in my city that I grew up in,” he said.
Mr Neely‘s death comes amid a period of heightened public attention to both homelessness and mental illness on New York City’s streets and subways. Following several high-profile incidents, including a shooting on a subway train that left 10 people wounded last year, Mayor Eric Adams promised to deploy additional police officers and mental health workers throughout the transit system.
The freelance journalist who recorded the incident, Juan Alberto Vazquez, told the New York Post that Mr Neely was screaming “in an aggressive manner,” and complaining of hunger and thirst.
Mr Neely did not physically attack anyone, Mr Vazquez said, adding that the Marine veteran approached the man after he threw his jacket to the ground.
