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From Fox News: The Manhattan jurors weighing the fate of Marine veteran Daniel Penny return to court Monday, but only to consider the lesser charge against him after a judge controversially tossed the more serious charge and avoided a mistrial.
Judge Maxwell Wiley on Friday agreed to the prosecution’s request to dismiss the most serious charge, second degree manslaughter, after jurors twice told the court they had deadlocked on the issue.
They had previously been instructed to deliberate the lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide only if they found Penny not guilty of manslaughter for some reason other than a lack of justification.
“Manslaughter in the second degree is dismissed,” Wiley told the jurors before sending them home Friday. “What that means is you are now free to consider count two. Whether that makes any difference, I have no idea.”
Monday morning, the jury has now returned to consider the lesser charge, after the first one was dismissed – when the judge had earlier said, “I think that they can’t move on to count 2 unless they find the defendant not guilty of count 1.”
Penny’s lawyers had warned about the judge allowing the jury to move on to the second count, saying, “The risk here of a coercive verdict or a compromised verdict…New York is clear that compromised verdicts are discouraged. It would force them into what we would submit would be manufactured, as to the lesser count of criminal negligence.”
The trial is all over an incident which occurred on May 1, 2023. Penny, then 24, a U.S. Marines veteran, was riding on the NYC train when Jordan Neely, a 30-year-old homeless man with schizophrenia and high on drugs, barged onto the train and started threatening the other passengers.
Penny reacted by placing Neely in a chokehold and holding him until police arrived to take custody of him. Neely was reportedly still alive when police took over, but died later. Penny is being charged for his death, although many frightened witnesses testified how relieved and thankful they were that Penny stopped Neely’s threatening behavior.
Below is a video of Penny filmed soon after the incident, as he explained what happened.
Daniel Penny is a model citizen who should be praised by the city of New York.
He is a breed of young men who are becoming less and less common.
He puts his own safety at risk to help others.
He didn’t cower or pull out his phone to film when Jordan Neely started threatening… pic.twitter.com/sSl74Mji0W
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) December 6, 2024
Many members of the public have stated they believe Penny is a hero and should have never been charged.
Political commentator Meghan McCain wrote last week, “I don’t think the left fully grasps how much they are radicalizing people when a marine who saved a bunch of people on the subway from a violent person with mental illness yelling “someone is going to die today” is demonized. Daniel Penny did nothing wrong, you lunatics.”
I don’t think the left fully grasps how much they are radicalizing people when a marine who saved a bunch of people on the subway from a violent person with mental illness yelling “someone is going to die today” is demonized.
Daniel Penny did nothing wrong, you lunatics.
— Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) December 6, 2024
Pray for Daniel Penny to become a free man tomorrow 🙏🏼
He did nothing wrong and this trial is a disgrace.
Daniel Penny: “I felt the need to step in because there were women and children on the train.”
pic.twitter.com/yw5ah8u6CV— TONY™ (@TONYxTWO) December 9, 2024
I’d like to live in a world where Daniel Penny is a hero and George Floyd is not.
— Bear🐻🇺🇸 (@VP72801) December 6, 2024
I agree! Daniel Penny must be cleared of all charges come tomorrow, and if there is a verdict it must be NOT GUILTY across the board!
This man, this Marine, is a hero, the judge and DA are making this a mockery, this is a circus court, it’s disgusting. It’s been confirmed that… pic.twitter.com/yYdDalhfgl
— Sequencer (@RealSeq16) December 8, 2024
This is a column from my friend Andy McCarthy that raises a number of important points about the Penny prosecution. Andy is a former federal prosecutor from New York and one of the sharpest legal minds around. https://t.co/MNS2KWGIGu
— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) December 9, 2024
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