Jurors have started deliberating in the trial of a military veteran charged with using a fatal chokehold to subdue a man whose behavior was alarming passengers on a New York subway train
Jurors began deliberating and soon revisited some of their legal instructions Tuesday in the trial of a military veteran charged with using a fatal chokehold to subdue a New York subway rider whose behavior was alarming other passengers.
The anonymous jury is weighing manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide charges in the death of Jordan Neely, a troubled street performer who was homeless. The veteran, Daniel Penny, has pleaded not guilty and maintains that his actions were justified.
In a reflection of the complexities of the closely watched case, the jury asked within the first 75 minutes of deliberations to rehear Judge Maxwell Wiley’s instructions on justification defenses and on the definitions of the crimes charged. After the re-reading and 90 more minutes of deliberations, jurors headed home for the day without reaching a verdict.
Penny, 26, has said he was protecting fellow subway riders and intended only to restrain Neely and hold him for police, not to hurt him. Prosecutors say the Marine veteran used far too much force for too long when he gripped Neely by the neck for about six minutes.
The case has animated debate about public safety, societal responses to mental illness and homelessness, the line between self-defense and aggression, and the role of race in all of it.
