Marine veteran Daniel Penny was charged with second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide Wednesday in connection with the May 1 chokehold death of Jordan Neely aboard a New York City subway train.
“Daniel Penny stands indicted for manslaughter after allegedly putting Jordan Neely in a deadly chokehold for several minutes until and after he stopped moving. I hope Mr. Neely’s loved ones are on the path towards healing as they continue to mourn this tragic loss,” said District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
Penny, 24, pleaded not guilty to the charges and is free on $100,000 bail. His next court appearance is October 25.
Members of Neely’s family sat in the second row during Penny's court appearance. Penny’s relatives sat in the row behind them.
Penny was indicted by a grand jury on June 14.
According to court documents and statements, Neely entered the train at the 2nd Avenue station and began making verbal threats to passengers. Less than a minute later, Penny put Neely in a chokehold, which lasted for several minutes.
Police sources told ABC News that Penny was not specifically being threatened by Neely when he intervened and that Neely had not become violent and had not been threatening anyone in particular.
Neely was homeless at the time of the incident.
Outside court, defense attorneys spoke confidently about Penny’s ability to be found not guilty.
“We are a long way off from trial, but all the evidence we’ve seen is that our client acted under the law,” defense attorney Thomas Keniff said.
Neely’s family and supporters denounced Penny and expressed their hope for justice.
“Daniel Penny did not have the courage to look Mr. Jordan’s father in the eye,” said attorney Dante Mills, who is representing the Neely family.
Following the indictment, Penny's attorney Steven Raiser remained confident in Penny's actions.
"While we respect the decision of the grand jury to move this case forward to trial, it should be noted that the standard of proof in a grand jury is very low and there has been no finding of wrongdoing. We're confident that when a trial jury is tasked with weighing the evidence, they will find Daniel Penny's actions on that train were fully justified," said Raiser.
Attorneys for Neely's family applauded the grand jury's decision to indictment.
"The grand jury's decision tells our city and our nation that 'no one is above the law' no matter how much money they raise, no matter what affiliations they claim, and no matter what distorted stories they tell in interviews," the attorneys said in a statement.