NEW YORK — The Rev. Al Sharpton delivered a fiery call for justice Friday as family, friends and total strangers packed a Harlem church for a heartfelt farewell to subway chokehold victim Jordan Neely.
Sharpton, in his nearly 30-minute eulogy for the victim, recounted details of the chilling caught-on-video killing, his voice rising to a crescendo while promising to bring city-wide change in the victim’s honor.
“One thing I promise, in your name, we’re going to change how they deal with the homeless, the mentally ill,” said Sharpton. “Jordan, you didn’t die for nothing.”
He invoked Neely’s love of Michael Jackson, along with his many subway and street performances dressed as the late King of Pop, while repeatedly asking how the ex-Marine accused in the killing wasn’t immediately arrested.
“Jordan wanted to be like Michael, who made the world smile,” said Sharpton, who presided at Jordan’s funeral. “You didn’t have the right to snatch the life out of this young man.”
The emotional service at the Mount Neboh Baptist Church began with a 9 a.m. private viewing for mourners inside the building, followed by the sad funeral sendoff honoring the 30-year-old victim in the polarizing killing.
Sharpton recounted Neely’s last moments of life before ripping the decision to release his killer.
“A boy on a train is screaming for help, and somebody comes up from behind and claims self-defense,” said Sharpton “... I want to know who decided at the precinct to let this guy go home and sleep in his own bed.
“It must be equal justice under the law. So if we look like we’re angry, we are.”
The crowd jumped to their feet and erupted in cheers as Sharpton finished, with mourners chanting “No justice! No peace!” The funeral was held in the same church as the one for Neely’s mother, who was murdered in 2007.
Defendant Daniel Perry was arrested 11 days after Neely’s death and now faces a charge of second-degree manslaughter. He remains free on $100,000 bail.
Neely’s gleaming white casket, covered with red and white flowers and trimmed in gold, stood before the altar inside the crowded church where his father and other relatives said their farewells.
Neely’s dad Zachery sat quietly through the service, while the victim’s great aunt Mildred Mahazu read from the the victim’s obituary: “One of Jordan’s biggest passions was to dance and entertain.”
Attendees included Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and city Public Advocate Jumaane, with Mayor Eric Adams asked to steer clear of the service by Neely’s family.
The mourners sang “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” to start the service where Carolyn J. Ruff arrived from Chicago to celebrate Neely’s life and demand justice.
“I thought it was my duty to show up and advocate for the family,” said Ruff, 75, founder of Black Lives Matter Women of Faith. “We definitely want people to know this can’t happen again.”
Yusef Salaam, one of the wrongly-convicted Central Park Five, described Penny as “judge, juror and executioner” before mentioning the defendant’s supporters from the church pulpit.
“It all happened on camera,” said Salaam, now a candidate for the City Council. “And this was being lauded by those who can’t see our humanity ... Let Jordan’s memory be a blessing for us.”
Penny’s legal defense fund received more than $2.6 million in donations over the last week.
Sharpton spoke nearly three weeks after Neely’s death and one week after the arrest of Penny.
The veteran activist was among the first to call for criminal charges in the headline-making confrontation. Sharpton again demanded the arrest of two other men seen holding the victim down on the train.
“This is nothing new, us being murdered like this,” said a woman outside the church, holding a sign reading “They Murdered Jordan Neely” before the service began. “Mental illness? We were brought here in chains!”
Neely died after the lethal scuffle inside a Manhattan subway car on where the 24-year-old took the homeless and mentally ill man to the train floor.
The medical examiner declared the death a homicide, finding Neely died from compressions to the neck as Penny applied the hold with his left arm wrapped around the other man’s throat.
The video showed the victim struggling with Penny, his legs flailing, until Neely finally stopped moving.
Neely was once a fixture in Times Square and aboard city subways as a Jackson impersonator. The victim, who struggled with mental health issues, became loud and boisterous aboard an F train before Penny took him down.
Cellphone footage showed two other individuals restraining Neely with Penny until the man passed out and was pronounced dead at Lenox Hill Hospital.
Outside the church, Tyrone Milson, 36, wore a sweatshirt with images of Neely dressed as Jackson while doing a brief break-dance. Rev. Keith Gadson stood nearby, playing a version of “Billie Jean” on a keyboard.
“You deliberately murdered this guy,” he said. “That’s vigilante stuff. Is this the kind of society we pay taxes for?”
