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NY Post
New York Post
24 May 2023


NextImg:Several counter-protesters arrested at rally for subway chokehold suspect Daniel Penny

A rally for subway chokehold suspect Daniel Penny turned rowdy and resulted in several arrests on Wednesday when dozens of counter-protestors clashed with supporters of the former Marine.

The show of support was organized by Long Island County Executive Bruce Blakeman and brought about 60 flag-waving supporters of Penny to Collect Pond Park around 11 a.m., according to police.

But the supporters were met with about 30 demonstrators carrying signs reading “Justice for Jordan Neely” and shouting “Go back to Long Island.

Blakeman said he organized the rally to support Penny, who is facing manslaughter charges for choking Neely aboard a Manhattan F train on May 1.

“[We’re] here to let the people of New York know that the prosecution of Daniel Penny is an outrage,” Blakeman told supporters. “It’s a miscarriage of justice, and this has been a problem that has existed in Manhattan since Alvin Bragg has been District Attorney.

At least three people were arrested Wednesday when counter-protestors clashed with supporters of accused subway chokehold suspect Daniel Penny in Manhattan organized by Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman.
Getty Images
NYC rally for Daniel Penny leads to arrests.
The NYPD said about 60 supporters of accused subway chokehold suspect Daniel Penny were confronted by about 30 counter-protestors at a Manhattan rally on Wednesday, with at least three people getting arrested.
Getty Images

“It’s not a problem in Staten Island. It’s not a problem in Queens. It’s not a problem in Brooklyn. It’s not a problem in the Bronx,” he said. “It’s a problem here in Manhattan with the Manhattan District Attorney. It’s not a problem with Mayor [Eric] Adams who wants this to be a safer city.

“Again, it’s somebody who should be the chief law enforcement officer in Manhattan but he puts the rights of criminals over those of law-abiding citizens and victims of crimes,” Blakeman said.

Several of the counter-protesters were detained during the demonstration. It was not clear Wednesday night how many people were arrested and whether charges were filed.

Penny’s arrest in Neely’s death has divided the city, with supporters saying the 24-year-old vigilante jumped in to protect straphangers from an aggressive Neely, while detractors called Penny’s actions unwarranted and unnecessary.

The fatal encounter, caught on now-viral video, shows Penny holding Neely in a chokehold on the floor of the subway car until the vagrant stops moving.

NYC rally for Daniel Penny
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman organized a rally in Manhattan to support accused subway chokehold suspect Daniel Penny on Wednesday, calling the charges “an outrage” and “a miscarriage of justice.”
James Messerschmidt for NY Post

At least two straphangers are seen helping Penny restrain Neely. Neely never regained consciousness and was later pronounced dead.

Penny was initially taken into custody and released. Further investigation by Bragg’s office yielded an indictment.

Penny told The Post in an exclusive interview last week that the incident “had nothing to do with race” and said, “I’m not a white supremacist.”

He is due back in court on July 17.

New York City Council member Vickie Paladino (R-Whitestone) said at Wednesday’s rally that the fatal encounter between the two men was “a sad one for all involved.”

Manhattan subway chokehold death.
The caught-on-video fatal encounter between US Marine Daniel Penny, at right, and homeless vagrant Jordan Neely, at left, has divided the city, with some calling Penny a hero and others calling the vigilante a killer.
Protestors at Daniel Penny rally.
About 30 counter-demonstrators showed at a rally organized by Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman on Wednesday in support of accused subway chokehold suspect Daniel Penny. Police said at least three were arrested.
James Messerschmidt for NY Post

“It’s sad for Mr. Neely, who was failed by a system who should have gotten him off the streets and gotten him the mental services that he deserved, and desperately needed,” Paladino said. “It’s sad for all New Yorkers who are continuously victimized by those like Mr. Neely. It’s sad for Mr. Penny who took the action to protect the people who were threatened on the train that day.

“The system failed Neely, and the system better not fail Penny,” she said. “He better get the free trial he deserves.”