A Manhattan grand jury has voted to indict Daniel Penny for the chokehold killing of Jordan Neely aboard an F train, law enforcement sources told the Daily News on Wednesday.
The former Marine was charged with second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide for Neely’s May 1 killing. The grand jury began hearing the case two weeks ago.
The Manhattan district attorney’s office declined to comment.
Penny’s lawyers indicated they would fight to prove his innocence.
“We’re confident that when a trial jury is tasked with weighing the evidence, they will find Daniel Penny’s actions on that train were fully justified,” attorney Steven Raiser said in a statement.
Rev. Al Sharpton, who previously called for Penny to be charged, welcomed the development.
“This was a clear-cut case of vigilantism that has no place in our society,” he said in a statement. “It appears Mr. Penny’s media tour these last few weeks was ineffective.”
Mayor Adams, who has refrained from directly condemning Penny’s actions, said he had faith in the legal process and appreciated DA Alvin Bragg’s investigation. Addressing subway crime has been a top priority for Adams.
“Like I said when the DA first brought charges, I have the utmost faith in the judicial process, and now that the grand jury has indicted Daniel Penny, a trial and justice can move forward,” the mayor said in a statement.
Bystander video showed Penny, 24, holding the 30-year-old Neely in a minutes-long chokehold until he stopped moving. The Manhattan DA brought manslaughter charges on May 11, and Penny was released on $100,000 bail.
Neely grew up in Manhattan and was known to many New Yorkers as a passionate Michael Jackson tribute artist. He battled severe mental illness and homelessness, according to relatives and friends.
Penny, an architecture student who was unemployed and looking for work at the time of the incident, has contended he acted to protect himself and other passengers from “an…
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