Elon Musk has defended Navy veteran Daniel Penny as he prepares for his manslaughter trial in the death of a homeless black man aboard the New York City subway.
Penny, then 24, restrained Michael Jackson impersonator Jordan Neely after witnesses said he began acting erratically on a crowded F train on May 1, 2023.
As his trial began Monday with jury selection, Musk shared a post on X with a screenshot of a woman complaining that none of the “young and fit” on the subway intervened when a man on the subway started harass another woman on Sunday. .
“This man on the subway was repeatedly harassing a woman, being disgusting, invading her space, etc,” wrote the original “They remained silent and looked at the ground.”
Another X user then suggested it’s because men “know what happens when they do it,” and shared a photo of Penny outside the Manhattan Supreme Court, and Musk agreed, writing, “Here’s why.”
Elon Musk has defended Navy veteran Daniel Penny as he prepares for his manslaughter trial.
Penny faces charges of involuntary manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide in the March 2023 death of Jordan Neely, 30,
Penny, who served four years in the Marine Corps before being discharged in 2021, now faces charges of involuntary manslaughter and negligent homicide, with prosecutors accusing him of “recklessly causing the death” of the 30-year-old street performer by holding him in a chokehold for six minutes, even after Neely went limp.
Witnesses to the incident said Neely, who struggled with addiction and mental illness, had been yelling and demanding money when Penny approached him.
Penny then pinned Neely to the ground with the help of two other passengers and strangled him, video of the incident shows.
The medical examiner later ruled the death a homicide caused by neck compression.
Prosecutors now argue that although some passengers aboard the crowded train that day were afraid, there were other accounts that undermined “the notion of rampant, universal panic.” according to the New York Times.
“For me it was like another typical day in New York. That’s what I’m used to seeing,” one witness told the grand jury, court documents show.
“I really wasn’t looking at it like I was going to be threatened or anything like that.”
Prosecutors also noted that none of the witnesses who testified before the postgraduate jury said Neely showed or claimed to have a gun or that he came into physical contact with anyone before Penny began choking him. NBC News Reports.
Even Penny said she didn’t see Neely put his hands on anyone or show a gun before throwing Neely to the ground.
But the former Marine claimed that Neely yelled, “I’m going to kill you” and that he was “ready to die” or go to prison for life.
He was caught on video grabbing Neely and strangling him after witnesses said he began acting erratically on a crowded F train.
Neely (pictured) struggled with addiction and suffered from untreated schizophrenia.
Penny’s attorneys argue that the Long Island native did not intend to kill Neely, only to hold him down long enough for police to arrive.
One of the attorneys, Steven Raiser, said the defense plans to offer other potential causes of Neely’s death, including high levels of the synthetic cannabinoid known as K2 found in his body.
Police even revealed under oath last month that first responders administered Narcan upon arrival, rather than immediately performing CPR.
Defense attorneys will also argue that the video shared widely on social media demonstrates that Penny was not applying pressure consistently enough to render Neely unconscious, much less kill him.
“The video has frequently been cited as support that the chokehold lasted too long,” Raiser told NBC New York.
“But in reality, the video shows that he was not applying pressure and that he was restraining Mr. Neely.”
The defense plans to rely on eyewitness accounts to portray Penny as a “protector” amid high crime rates in the New York City subway system, with regular reports of people being pushed onto the tracks or assaulted in the station platforms.
“There is an individual who says he was scared by this gentleman, Mr. Neely, and he had to act,” Raiser said.
“We have several additional witnesses who came forward and said, ‘Yes, you’re right. “That’s exactly how I felt too.”
Additionally, they plan to call a psychiatrist to the stand to discuss Neely’s struggle with untreated schizophrenia.
They say Neely was on a list, known informally as the Top 50, a list of homeless New Yorkers who stand out for the severity of their problems and their resistance to accepting help.
However, prosecutors have argued that the “only reason” to present Neely’s medical records to the jury is to cause them to “devalue Mr. Neely’s life.”
Penny’s attorneys argue that the Long Island native did not intend to kill Neely, only to hold him down long enough for police to arrive.
In court Monday, potential jurors crowded into the room, 86 people at a time, as Supreme Court Justice Maxwell Wiley began the arduous task of determining who should participate in the trial.
Potential jurors were asked about their availability for the six-week trial and whether they had heard of the case, which shocked the city and divided New Yorkers at a time of heightened tensions and the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement. .
At the end of the day, only 45 potential jurors from a pool of 136 Manhattanites were ordered to return Friday to join a larger pool that will ultimately undergo in-depth questioning. according to the New York Daily News.
They are expected to be asked about their own experiences traveling by subway.
After confirming the availability of 100 potential jurors, the judge will begin the arduous task of vetting them to narrow them down to the final 12-person jury.
Protesters showed up at Manhattan Criminal Court ahead of Penny’s trial on Monday.
Meanwhile, anti-racist protesters gathered outside the downtown courthouse chanting ‘Murderer! Murderer!’, along with others who came out in support of Penny, saying she saved the travelers from Neely.
Flyers were handed out describing Penny as a “white racist vigilante ex-Marine” who “killed” Neely, a “homeless black performance artist” who was “begging for food.”
The organizers designed the sign to look like a subway notice while also referring to the F line, which was where the incident took place.
Protesters held signs that read “Rest in Power Jordan Neely” and “Abolish the police,” while counterprotesters wrote, “NYC stands with Daniel Penny.”
‘Justice for whom? Jordan Neely. When do we want it? Now,” the group of about 50 people shouted.
Those chants were heard inside the Supreme Court building up to the 11th floor.
Pictured: A woman holds a funeral order for Jordan Neely before Daniel Penny arrives at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City on October 21.
One woman, Imani Henry, of Equality for Flatbush, a Brooklyn-based Black Lives Matter organization, said she feels Neely’s life had been unfairly minimized and argued that the city needs to do more for those with mental health issues and that They live in poverty. .
“Jordan Neely was loved in his communities,” he said.
“He was a brother, he was a community member, he was an artist; to continue to focus solely on his mental health condition is just unfair and wrong because we are not just a component of our lives.” We are full and complex people.’
The trial is expected to last until the week of December 9.
Penny faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted of second-degree murder and up to four years if convicted of criminally negligent homicide.