Daniel Penny defense expert: Jordan Neely didn’t die from chokehold

Daniel Penny’s defence squad called an adept witnesser Thursday, who challenged the Medical Examiner’s determination that Jordan Neely died arsenic a effect of the erstwhile Marine choking him on a subway car. 

Dr. Satish Chundru — a Texas-based forensic pathologist who Penny’s ineligible squad hired to reinvestigate Neely’s origin of decease — said helium disagreed with the opinions of everyone moving astatine the New York City aesculapian examiner’s office, including the main ME, that Neely perished arsenic a effect of compression of the neck. 

Chundru, who has been paid astir $90,000 for his enactment successful the Penny case, blamed an array of different factors for Neely’s death, including schizophrenia, his usage of synthetic marijuana, and a sickle compartment crisis caused by exertion from the conflict and restraint. Penny’s ineligible fees person been covered by an online fundraiser that has pulled successful much than $3 million.

“It’s just to accidental you ruled retired chokehold arsenic origin of decease successful this case?” Penny’s defence attorney, Steven Raiser, asked Chundru successful Manhattan Supreme Court. 

“That’s correct,” Chundru said. 

Chundru said a chokehold decease plays retired successful 2 stages. First, the idiosyncratic is rendered unconscious from accordant and capable unit connected their neck. The 2nd phase, helium said, sees the aggressor prolong that unit for an “extended play of time” until they die. 

He said 1 tin “call thing a chokehold” erstwhile some elements are met. 

“Unconsciousness ever precedes decease successful a chokehold,” the Texas doc said. 

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Jordan Neely successful 2009. (Andrew Savulich/New York Daily News)

Because footage of the incident depicts Neely, 30 astatine the clip of his death, appearing to modulation from live to dormant without a play of unconsciousness successful between, Chundru said helium determined Neely died from different factors.

Chundru further said helium did not judge determination were capable humor spots connected Neely’s eyelids nor due bruising connected Neely’s cervix to find the chokehold that instantly preceded his decease was the origin of it. 

In the assemblage for Chundru’s grounds was Dr. Cynthia Harris from the ME’s office, who performed the autopsy connected Neely the time aft the incident. She and her colleagues unanimously agreed the chokehold killed Neely the time aft the process aft footage of it became available.

Before the prosecution rested Monday, Harris said to scope immoderate different conclusion, she would need to disregard footage of Penny choking Neely until Neely passed retired and started displaying signs of “terminal encephalon injury,” a purple hue to his face, congested veins, humor spots connected his eyelids, harm to the interior structures of Neely’s neck, and different symptoms.

Harris said Neely showed signs of sickling but thing that would origin him to die. She said lone 7 overdose cases retired of 10,000 reviewed by the ME’s bureau successful 4 years progressive radical dying from ingesting the synthetic cannabis Neely had and that those people, dissimilar Neely, had abnormal hearts.

Juan Alberto Vazquez

Video footage of the incident. (Juan Alberto Vazquez/Juan Vazquez)

Neely, who grew up successful Manhattan and New Jersey, dealt with untreated intelligence illness, cause addiction, and homelessness. His relatives accidental that helium was devastated by his mother’s execution erstwhile helium was 14. He recovered joyousness successful performing arsenic Michael Jackson for New Yorkers erstwhile helium was stable.

Penny, 26, of West Islip, L.I., served 4 years successful the Marines and was studying architecture and moving arsenic a barback successful Brooklyn astatine the clip of the incident.

His loved ones person testified that helium grew up successful a tight-knit household and town, getting bully grades successful precocious school, wherever helium played upright bass with the orchestra and was connected the lacrosse team. He has pleaded not blameworthy to second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide. It’s inactive not wide whether helium plans to instrumentality the basal successful his defense. 

The 2 men, adjacent successful property and each lasting astatine 6 ft and 1 inch tall, were different worlds isolated successful their beingness experiences.

Their lives collided connected an uptown F bid connected the day of Monday, May 1, 2023.

Neely boarded the car Penny was riding to the gym astatine Second Ave. and began loudly screaming that helium was hungry, thirsty, and acceptable to spell to jailhouse soon aft the doors closed, alarming passengers, aggregate eyewitnesses person testified.

Penny rapidly sprung into action, taking Neely down from behind. Some 30 seconds later, the bid pulled into the adjacent stop, wherever the 2 men remained connected the floor, with Penny’s limb curled astir Neely’s cervix and his legs wrapped astir his body, according to videos shown astatine the trial.

Prosecutors accidental Penny acted appropriately portion the bid was successful question and criminally aft it reached Broadway-Lafayette, with nary request to proceed subduing Neely for astir six minutes aft passengers had fled to safety.

Jurors person heard from another rider who aided Penny. He said helium told him helium had Neely’s arms nether control, truthful it was harmless to fto spell of his neck, but Penny did not fto up.

On cross-examination, which was expected to resume Friday, authoritative Dafna Yoran sought to undermine Chundru’s grounds by pulling up studies that contradicted it arsenic good arsenic excerpts from his mentor’s publication and a caller TV peculiar helium appeared him that explored akin themes.

Chundru said helium consulted connected astir 30 cases yearly, with astir 60% of them for the defense, and had earned astir $90,000 from the Penny case.

Yoran asked if it was existent helium made $5 cardinal successful the past twelvemonth performing hundreds of backstage autopsies much than the National Association of Medical Examiners recommends to debar negatively impacting the prime of the procedures, including connected holidays and weekends.

Chundru said yes, adding, “I’m atrocious my concern is doing well.”