The jury hears opening statements in the trial of a veteran charged with murder in a subway chokehold

NEW YORK – Opening statements are scheduled for Friday in the manslaughter trial of Daniel Penny, a white Marine veteran accused of strangling a distressed black subway driver.

An anonymous Manhattan jury is deciding the manslaughter case related to Jordan Neely's 2023 death, which prosecutors call a reckless killing but Penny claims was self-defense. The case has exposed fault lines regarding race, homelessness, perceptions of public safety and bystander responsibility.

Penny's critics see him as a vigilante murderer of an unarmed man who behaved erratically and made nasty statements but didn't attack anyone in the subway car. Supporters credit Penny, 25, with taking action to protect frightened subway riders – actions he said were intended to defuse the situation, not kill.

Both camps have held demonstrations, and the case entered the fractious politics of the United States as Republican officials came out in support of Penny and Democratic officials attended Neely's funeral.

“This is not a simple case of an evil man doing something bad,” prosecutor Dafna Yoran told potential jurors during the selection process. Although Penny's intention may have been laudable, she said, “We will ask you to consider whether he has gone too far.”

Penny's lawyer, Steven Raiser, meanwhile, said a conviction “will have a chilling effect on the right and duty of every New Yorker to stand up for one another.”

Jurors, who were asked about their own subway experiences, will hear opening statements and possibly some testimony on Friday. It is unclear who will be the prosecution's first witness.

Neely's life was destroyed by mental illness and drug use after his mother was murdered and stuffed in a suitcase when he was a teenager, his family said. At 30, he sometimes entertained subway riders as a Michael Jackson impersonator, but also had a criminal record that included assaulting a woman at a subway station.

Penny, who served four years in the Marines, said he was on his way from a college class to a gym when he encountered Neely on a subway on May 1, 2023.

According to witnesses, Neely begged for money, yelled that she was ready to die or go to prison and made sudden movements. Some were alarmed, others indifferent, court records say.

Penny, who said Neely threatened people, put his arm around the man's neck and took him to the ground.

While a bystander videotaped part of the encounter, Penny held Neely for about six minutes, prosecutors wrote in court papers. The traffic jam continued as the train stopped, many people got off, two more helped hold Neely, and another warned Penny, “If you don't let him go now, you'll kill him.”

Penny finally released Neely nearly a minute after his body went limp, prosecutors said.

“I kicked him out,” Penny told police. He later added that he simply wanted to “de-escalate” the volatile situation and was not trying to hurt Neely, but rather “stop him from hurting anyone else.”

The city's medical examiner determined that Neely died of neck compression. Penny's lawyers have indicated they intend to challenge that finding.

They tried unsuccessfully to stop the jury from hearing some evidence, including Neely's lack of a weapon and Penny's testimony to detectives.

Judge Maxwell Wiley denied both motions. He ruled that Penny had willingly spoken to investigators without an attorney and that the question of whether Neely was armed – or someone could reasonably have thought he was armed – was relevant.