Jury selection begins in case against Daniel Penny for fatal chokehold of homeless man Jordan Neely aboard subway

Jury enactment began successful Manhattan Monday successful the manslaughter lawsuit against Daniel Penny, the erstwhile Marine accused of recklessly putting stateless antheral Jordan Neely successful a fatal chokehold connected a subway train.

Penny, 24, has pleaded not blameworthy to second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide for the May 1, 2023, incidental that played retired betwixt 2 stops connected an uptown F train, denying helium fatally subdued the 30-year-old Neely without bully reason.

He has claimed helium sprung into enactment erstwhile Neely, a one-time Michael Jackson tribute creator who was stateless astatine the clip and battling untreated schizophrenia, threatened the lives of passengers aboard the subway car.

Nearly each 1 of the archetypal batch of 86 prospective jurors changeable their hands up Monday greeting erstwhile Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Maxwell Wiley asked if they’d heard astir the polarizing lawsuit that prompted fierce debates astir intelligence illness, nationalist safety, and vigilantism. 

“Almost everybody. Not a surprise,” Wiley said. “Even if you person formed an sentiment astir it, that does not disqualify you from serving connected this lawsuit … If you person formed an sentiment connected this case, you person to beryllium prepared to alteration it.” 

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Jordan Neely is pictured earlier going to spot the Michael Jackson movie “This is It” successful Times Square successful 2009. (Andrew Savulich/New York Daily News)

Wiley work a database of much than 60 radical who whitethorn attest during the trial, which is expected to past six weeks, oregon whose names whitethorn different travel up. Among those included were passengers who were aboard the subway erstwhile the chokehold occurred, NYPD detectives and officers from the Fifth Precinct, and assorted aesculapian professionals. 

By lunchtime, Wiley had excused 58 radical called successful for assemblage duty. He told 28 to instrumentality connected Friday astatine 10 a.m., erstwhile they’re expected to look a grilling from prosecutors astatine the Manhattan territory attorney’s bureau and Penny’s lawyers astir their experiences riding the subway successful New York City. 

Currently retired connected a $100,000 bond, Penny wore a navy bluish suit and a maroon necktie connected the archetypal time of his trial. He waved to the prospective panelists and said, “Good morning,” soon aft the proceedings began. 

The erstwhile infantry squad leader, who was studying architecture successful Brooklyn astatine the clip of the incident, has claimed helium boarded the bid astatine Jay St.-MetroTech and intervened erstwhile Neely got connected astatine Second Ave., threw down his overgarment and started screaming. 

Prosecutors do not allege Penny intended to termination Neely. But they accidental helium behaved recklessly by placing him successful a lethal chokehold for astatine slightest six minutes and disregarded signs helium was putting Neely’s beingness astatine hazard — including “well past the point” Neely stopped moving and aft passengers had disembarked the bid car astatine Broadway-Lafayette.

The 12 Manhattanites and six alternates yet selected to determine the lawsuit are expected to perceive grounds from passengers who witnessed the incident, overmuch of which was captured successful cellphone footage by bystanders, and detectives who interviewed Penny successful the contiguous aftermath. It’s unclear whether Penny plans to instrumentality the basal successful his defense.

When they testified earlier a expansive assemblage past year, aggregate passengers related that Neely boarded the bid and loudly expressed that helium was “homeless, hungry, and thirsty,” and consenting “to spell to jailhouse oregon prison.”

Accounts differed connected the menace level Neely genuinely posed.

In tribunal documents, the prosecution has highlighted the position of passengers who believed his outburst was “common” of radical they’d witnessed successful situation portion riding the trains, and that cipher accused him of putting his hands connected anyone oregon bearing a weapon.

Neely’s defence attorneys, successful turn, person focused connected accounts by passengers who deemed it retired of the ordinary, including 1 pistillate who testified that cipher had ever “put fearfulness into” her similar Neely.

This communicative volition beryllium updated.