Kid Rock called Daniel Penny, the man charged with manslaughter in the chokehold death of Jordan Neely on a New York City subway last week, a “hero” as he donated to Penny’s defense fundraiser.
Funds raised in support of Penny on GiveSendGo, a Christian crowdfunding site, have surpassed $2.3 million from more than 49,000 donors as of Tuesday morning.
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Kid Rock donated $5,000 to the campaign and wrote in support of Penny against Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat.
“Mr. Penny is a hero. Alvin Bragg is a POS. Kid Rock,” he said in the donation message.
On Thursday, Penny, a 24-year-old Marine veteran, turned himself in on second-degree manslaughter charges related to the choking death of Neely. Penny was released on a $100,000 bond and was required to turn in his passport.
The fundraiser has been boosted by other large donations, including $10,000 from Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
The campaign is reportedly the second largest that GiveSendGo has seen since its inception in 2015. Jacob Wells, GiveSendGo’s co-founder, said that at one point, donations were coming in at $1,000 per minute. The 2022 Canadian trucker Freedom Convoy fundraising campaign remains the top campaign.
Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) encouraged people to support the fundraising campaign, tweeting on Saturday: "We stand with Good Samaritans like Daniel Penny. Let’s show this Marine ... America’s got his back.”
Neely, 30, was a street artist known for Michael Jackson impersonations whose mental health and drug abuse struggles led him to bouts of homelessness.
Neely was threatening passengers aboard a northbound F subway train when Penny wrestled him to the ground and restrained him in a chokehold while waiting for help to arrive, according to witnesses at the scene.
Penny's lawyers said in a statement late last week that their client was not acting in pursuit of harming Neely but instead to protect himself and others from an erratic man having a mental health episode.
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"When Mr. Neely began aggressively threatening Daniel Penny and the other passengers, Daniel, with the help of others, acted to protect themselves, until help arrived," the statement said. "Daniel never intended to harm Mr. Neely and could not have foreseen his untimely death."
Penny is due back in court on July 17.