OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Retired Judge Andrew Napolitano had positive things to say about NYC subway “hero” Daniel Penny following his acquittal over charges related to the death of Jordan Neely.
Penny, who applied a chokehold to restrain Neely on a New York City subway car in May 2023 after the homeless man got on and immediately began threatening to harm or kill passengers, was acquitted of criminally negligent homicide on Monday.
“Listen, I’m happy with the outcome of the criminal case as well. He can’t go to jail, and he shouldn’t go to jail. And he’s a hero in New York City, obviously not to everybody, but to a lot of us,” Napolitano told Newsmax TV host Carl Higbie.
That said, Penny is now facing a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Neely’s family, though they didn’t seem interested in helping him get off the streets after more than 40 prior arrests, including slugging a senior citizen.
“So, in order to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and to a moral certainty, we’re talking about 99% of evidence indicating guilt. In the civil case, 51%. So the standard is very different,” Napolitano said. “In the criminal case, Daniel Penny didn’t have to testify; in the civil case he will be forced to testify.”
“[T]hey do have the right to sue [Penny] for wrongful death because there’s an argument to be made — again on the civil side where the standard is a lot lesser — that he was instrumental in causing the death of this young man.”
He added that Penny cannot countersue the Neely family.
Penny and his legal team were seen celebrating in Manhattan on Monday following his acquittal in a high-profile manslaughter trial.
The 26-year-old Marine veteran was spotted enjoying a beer with his defense attorneys, Thomas Kenniff and Steven Raiser, at Stone Street Tavern in the Financial District just hours after a jury cleared him.
The group later continued their evening at the American Whiskey bar in Midtown, the New York Post reported.
Penny, a Long Island native, had faced the possibility of up to four years in prison if convicted. When asked how he was feeling, a visibly relieved Penny, accompanied by security guards, simply replied, “Great,” as his lawyers kept him away from reporters, The Post added.
Kenniff noted that his client will move on and attempt to get his life back.
“He’ll be looking to resume, get his life back together,” he said. “The situation like this, we savor the victory but all the harm that has been done to him just doesn’t vanish. That’s true of anyone who is falsely accused.”
After about five days of deliberation, jurors concluded that Daniel Penny was not criminally responsible for the death of Jordan Neely, whom he allegedly placed in a chokehold on a crowded subway in May 2023.
The 12-member jury initially deadlocked on Friday, leading prosecutors to make the unexpected decision to drop the manslaughter charge, the most serious count against Penny, and instruct the jury to continue deliberating on the lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide.
“I’m not surprised [by the verdict] in the sense that Day 1 we knew that we believed he would be exonerated because the evidence overwhelmingly supported that,” said Kenniff. “When you’re in the midst of it, five days of deliberation, it would be inhuman not to be nervous, not to have anxiety. Were we surprised by how it came down, when it came down, the moment it came down? Sure. But were we surprised by the result? No.”
The Post added, “Penny and his crew were later spotted downing pints at American Whisky on West 30th Street — where they were also hounded by his security.”
