Daniel Penny's trial for NYC subway chokehold death begins with opening statements
NEW YORK — The trial of Daniel Penny began Friday with opening statements. The 26-year-old Marine veteran is charged in the chokehold death of Jordan Neely, 30, on a New York City subway in 2023.
Penny was expressionless as he walked into the courthouse with his legal team and sat across from jurors who will ultimately decide his fate. Outside, demonstrators chanted, "Justice for Jordan Neely."
The Marine veteran is charged with manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide in the death of Neely, a homeless man who Penny says was threatening passengers on a subway train in May 2023 when he placed him in a chokehold. Penny has pleaded not guilty.
According to court documents, Neely boarded an F train, allegedly shouting, throwing things and acting erratically. Penny told police Neely was threatening to kill everyone on the train. He pinned Neely to the ground and held him in a chokehold for several minutes. Neely died at the scene, and his death was ruled a homicide.
Prosecution, defense give opening statements
Prosecutors' opening statements were just over 40 minutes. They told the jury, "Jordan Neely took his last breaths on the dirty floor of an uptown F train." They noted he was 30 years old, homeless, high on synthetic marijuana and struggling with mental health issues when he entered that train screaming threats. Though they say Penny's intentions were good, "the defendant went way too far" and used "far too much force for far too long."
They argued Neely was in a chokehold for nearly six minutes, even after everyone else got off the train, and that deadly physical force is permitted only when absolutely necessary and only for as long as absolutely necessary.
"The defendant had not tried any other means to deescalate the situation. He quite literally went for the jugular," prosecutors said.
Prosecutors argued Penny was reckless with Neely "because he didn't recognize his humanity."
The defense spoke for 18 minutes. Attorneys told jurors this case is "not about heroes and villains, this is a case about what a young man did for others. What we want someone to do for us." The defense called Neely a "seething psychotic" and said he entered the train demanding food and drinks, and that Penny saw a mother barricading her son behind his baby stroller and heard Neely say, "I will kill."
Penny's attorneys argued that Penny had no opportunity to deescalate the situation and Neely was aggressively resisting, that Penny could barely contain him and that police took a long time to arrive.
Responding NYPD officers take the stand in Daniel Penny trial
The first witness to take the stand was one of the first NYPD officers on the scene back in May 2023. Jurors watched video from his body camera.
When asked what happened, Penny is seen on the video telling officers, "He was threatening everybody when he came onto the train." He's then asked if Neely has a weapon on him.
"I don't know. I just, I just put him out," Penny says.
In the video, the officer searches for weapons and pulls a muffin out of Neely's jacket pocket. The officer says he feels a pulse on Neely, and another says he's breathing. Narcan is administered, and eventually CPR begins. Narcan is administered again, and CPR continues before eventually an AED is brought.
A second officer testified he was surprised at how long it took an ambulance to arrive.
A third responding officer and two MTA employees also took the stand. Jurors watched multiple body cam videos from responding officers. CBS News New York's Alice Gainer reports jurors were paying attention and taking notes.
Six rows in the courtroom were press. About 20 members of the public were inside, with more waiting in line to get inside. Members of Neely's family were also present.
Donte Mills, an attorney for Neely's family, said in a press conference, "This is a very straightforward case. I don't think this is a difficult case to prosecute."
He also said, "We know who the victim is in this case, and we know who the villain is."
"The scene that our client had to contend with on that subway will really come to light when we start hearing from some of these passengers," said Penny's attorney, Thomas Kenniff.
During the lunch break, Penny's attorneys were asked how the day was going.
"Very well," an attorney said.
Court resumes Monday. The trial is expected to last about six weeks.
All 12 jurors are subway riders, most say they've seen outbursts on trains
It took eight days to choose 12 jurors and four alternates. It's an anonymous jury made up of seven women and five men. All ride the subway, some more than others. Most said they had witnessed outbursts on the train, and others said they had been personally harassed or threatened.
Neely struggled with homelessness, mental illness and drug addiction.
While questioning and speaking with potential jurors this week, prosecutors told them while they believed that Penny's intention was a good one and that he wanted to protect people on the subway from what he perceived to be a threat, Penny "went way too far," was reckless and unnecessarily took another life.
Defense attorneys, who refer to their client as Danny, told prospective jurors that just because the medical examiner classified Neely's death a homicide, it doesn't mean Penny is responsible.
The defense hired a jury consultant for the selection process. Past high-profile cases she worked on included O.J. Simpson, Scott Peterson and, more recently, Kyle Rittenhouse.
Defense attorneys wanted to keep the police search of Neely's body out of evidence because officers found no weapon on Neely, but Thursday, a judge ruled it was allowed in.
