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   nyc.politics      Politics specific to New York City      92,004 messages   

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   Message 91,753 of 92,004   
   Jon Ball to All   
   Man of honesty and integrity charged by    
   01 Nov 24 20:37:54   
   
   XPost: talk.politics.guns, alt.politics.socialist.nazi, alt.law-   
   nforcement.corruption   
   XPost: sac.politics, alt.fan.rush-limbaugh   
   From: jew@whores.nyc   
      
   NEW YORK (AP) — To some New Yorkers, he’s the white vigilante who choked   
   an innocent Black man to death on the subway. To others, he’s the U.S.   
   Marine Corps veteran whose attempt to subdue a mentally ill man ended in   
   tragedy.   
      
   A Manhattan jury will soon have its say on Daniel Penny, who is charged   
   with manslaughter for placing Jordan Neely in a fatal chokehold on May   
   1, 2023. Jury selection in Penny’s trial begins Monday.   
      
   The court proceedings, which are expected to last six weeks, will shed   
   light on a killing that was a flashpoint in the nation’s debate over   
   racial injustice and crime.   
      
   Neely’s death also divided a city grappling with what to do about people   
   experiencing mental health crises in a transit system where some subway   
   straphangers still don’t feel safe, despite a drop in violent crime rates.   
      
   “There is simply no reason for Jordan Neeley to be dead today,” David   
   Giffen, executive director of the Coalition for the Homeless, told The   
   Associated Press on Wednesday. “So many systems failed Jordan and   
   contributed to his death.”   
      
   Penny, 25, has been free on a $100,000 bond. He faces up to 15 years in   
   prison if convicted of second-degree manslaughter and up to four years   
   if convicted of criminally negligent homicide.   
      
   Witnesses said Neely — a 30-year-old former Michael Jackson street   
   impersonator struggling with drug addiction, mental illness and   
   homelessness — had been shouting, throwing things and acting erratically   
   on a subway train in Manhattan when Penny approached him.   
      
      
   With the help of two other passengers, Penny pinned Neely to the ground   
   and placed him in a chokehold for more than three minutes until Neely’s   
   body went limp and he lost consciousness. The medical examiner’s office   
   ruled the death a homicide caused by compression of the neck.   
      
   The encounter sparked nearly two weeks of protests before Manhattan   
   District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office brought an indictment.   
      
   Meanwhile, millions of dollars in donations poured in from across the   
   country to help Penny cover his legal costs, including from prominent   
   conservative personalities and Republican candidates for president.   
      
   Penny’s lawyers have argued that the Long Island native didn’t intend to   
   kill Neely, just to hold him down long enough for police to arrive, as   
   he was concerned for the safety of others.   
      
   “If Danny is convicted, his conviction will have a chilling effect on   
   every New Yorker’s right and duty to stand up for each other,” Penny’s   
   lawyer Steven Raiser said Wednesday. “Our sincerest hope is that New   
   Yorkers selected for this jury will stand up for Danny just like Danny   
   stood up for them back on that train over a year ago today.”   
      
   Penny, who served four years in the Marines before being discharged in   
   2021, claimed that Neely shouted “I’m gonna’ kill you” and that he was   
   “ready to die” or go to jail for life.   
      
   But Neely’s family and supporters have said he was simply crying out for   
   help. They said his mental health deteriorated after his mother’s body   
   was found stuffed in a suitcase in the Bronx and he testified at her   
   boyfriend’s murder trial.   
      
   Some witnesses, including a freelance journalist who captured video of   
   some of the altercation, also said Neely had been acting aggressively   
   and frightening people but hadn’t attacked anyone before Penny pulled   
   him to the floor.   
      
   Neely’s surviving family members say they’ve been anticipating this   
   moment and intend to attend the trial.   
      
   “I just want to look into his face and wonder why he would do something   
   like that,” said Mildred Mahazu, Neely’s 85-year-old aunt and primary   
   caretaker after his mother died. “Jordan was somebody’s child. He was   
   loved by his family.”   
      
   Neely’s uncle, Christopher Neely, agreed.   
      
   “Justice for Jordan is all we think about,” the 45-year-old Manhattan   
   resident said. “We can’t let Jordan’s name be added to the list of Black   
   people killed by a racist white person with no justice.”   
      
   Prosecutors argued in court filings that Penny’s actions were   
   unwarranted, reckless and negligent, even if he didn’t have the   
   intention to kill.   
      
   They’ve focused on recorded statements Penny made to police in which he   
   describes Neely as a “crackhead,” touts his armed forces experience and   
   demonstrates to officers the submission technique he used.   
      
   “I just put him out. I just put him in a chokehold,” Penny said,   
   according to a transcript of the recordings included in court filings.   
   “He was threatening everybody.”   
      
   “I’m not trying to kill the guy,” Penny said at another point to police.   
   “I’m just trying to deescalate the situation.”   
      
   Bragg’s office declined to comment beyond what its said in court   
   filings. Prosecutors, in pretrial hearings, sought to exclude evidence   
   about Neely’s medical and psychological history, including his record of   
   substance abuse. The judge hadn’t released his ruling on that request as   
   of Friday.   
      
   Raiser said Penny’s defense will offer up other potential causes for   
   Neely’s death, including high levels of the synthetic cannabinoid known   
   as K2 that were identified in toxicology reports.   
      
   They’ll also argue that video shared widely on social media proves Penny   
   was not applying pressure consistently enough to render Neely   
   unconscious, much less kill him, he said.   
      
   “If he was applying that kind of pressure, Mr. Neely would have been   
   rendered unconscious long before the video, circulating online, ever   
   started,” Raiser said.   
      
   In January, Penny’s lawyers lost their bid to have the case dismissed   
   outright. Then earlier this month, Judge Maxwell Wiley rejected their   
   request to prevent jurors from hearing Penny’s statements to police, as   
   well as body camera footage from officers who initially responded.   
      
   Penny’s attorneys argued that police should have read Penny his Miranda   
   rights sooner and that his questioning at the police station amounted to   
   an illegal arrest.   
      
   But Wiley, in a written ruling, determined that Penny’s statements were   
   admissible. The judge said Penny had waived his rights against   
   self-incrimination in the interrogation room and willingly spoke to   
   officers without a lawyer present.   
      
   As for Christopher Neely, he hopes what’s not lost in the trial is the   
   memory of his late nephew.   
      
   “I want people to remember his strengths and his conquests to greatness   
   and his conquering of fears,” he wrote. “I want people to remember that   
   mental health is a serious issue and that it needs tenderness, not   
   spontaneous rage. Most importantly, I want people to know that Jordan   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)   

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