Daniel Penny pleaded not guilty to manslaughter charges on Wednesday in connection with the high-profile chokehold death of Jordan Neely.
The 24-year-old former Marine was arraigned on charges of second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide after he was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury earlier this month.
If convicted on both counts, Penny could face a sentence of up to 19 years in prison.
In early May, Penny held Neely in a chokehold on the F train. Before he was placed in the chokehold, the homeless man, who had a history of mental illness, was throwing garbage and yelling that he wanted to die or go to jail because he was tired of having no food. Penny was arrested by authorities but was later released on $100,000 bail.
Penny said in a video released by his attorneys that he “just couldn't sit still” as Neely threatened to kill people on the train. He insisted he restrained Neely to stop him from “being able to carry out the threats.” Penny clarified that he did not intend to “choke him to death” and dismissed reports that he held Neely in a chokehold for 15 minutes. Neely, he said, was shouting in "terrified" passengers' faces.
"There's a common misconception that Marines don't get scared. We're actually taught one of our core values is courage, and courage is not the absence of fear but how you handle fear," he said. "I was scared for myself, but I looked around there was women and children, he was yelling in their faces saying these threats. I just couldn't sit still."
Comments
Post a Comment