The video of a former U.S. Marine putting a chokehold on another man until he died will play a vital role for both the prosecution and defense.
Jury selection started Monday in the trial of Daniel Penny, who is charged in the death of Jordan Neely on a New York City subway, per NBC News.
The four-minute video in question allegedly shows what happened May 1, 2023, that resulted in Neely’s death.
The case has been a point of contention. Regarding racial justice in the U.S.
The 26-year-old Penny, who is white, did not exert the pressure needed for the hold to be deadly, Penny’s attorneys said.
Prosecutors, on the other hand, contend he used excessive force while putting the chokehold on Neely, a 30-year-old Black man who was a Michael Jackson impersonator.
Penny, whose trial is expected to last six weeks, has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide. He faces a maximum of 15 years in prison if convicted of the manslaughter.
The New York City chief medical examiner’s office ruled the cause of death was compression to Neely’s neck as a result of the chokehold; the manner was ruled a homicide.
Penny was interviewed a released by police on the day Neely died — a move highly criticized by officials who wanted an immediate arrest.
Neely, who struggled with homelessness and mental illness, was shouting aboard a train in Manhattan the day he died, witnesses said.
Prosecutors agree that Neely was acting in an aggressively, according to court documents.
Steven Raiser, one of Penny’s attorneys, said about six witnesses will testify for the defense.
“You have an individual that’s saying that he was frightened by this gentleman, Mr. Neely, and he had to act,” Raiser said Thursday. “We have several additional witnesses that come up and say, ‘Yes, he’s right. That’s exactly how I felt, too.’”
Prosecutors have said in court documents that witnesses “differed sharply in their threat assessments.”
One witness said, “It was like another day typically in New York. That’s what I’m used to seeing,” according to grand jury minutes.
Another witness said, “I personally didn’t feel threatened.”
None of the witnesses who testified before the grand jury said Neely claimed to have a weapon or that he came into physical contact with anyone prior to Penny choking him, prosecutors said in court documents.
Penny served in the Marine Corps for four years before being discharged in 2021.
He pinned Neely to the ground with the help of two other passengers, according to prosecutors and the video, which shows Penny wrapping his legs around Neely’s body as the two are on the floo.
Prosecutors said Penny had Neely in a chokehold for about six minutes.
Police said Neely lost consciousness during the fight. An eyewitness told the grand jury he was grateful for Penny’s actions, but later, believed it was excessive, prosecutors said in court documents.
Raiser said the defense will prove a chokhold was not used, but Penny restrained Neely.
“The video’s been cited frequently as supporting the chokehold as going on too long,” Raiser said. “But in reality, the video proves that he wasn’t applying pressure, and he was holding Mr. Neely.”
