Fundraiser for ex-Marine Daniel Penny nears $2M as attorneys say subway chokehold case ‘struck a chord’ with public
A fundraiser for Daniel Penny neared the $2 million mark Sunday, along with his attorneys saying donations have stored rolling in as a result of the subway chokehold case has “struck a chord” within the psyche of individuals throughout the nation.
The “Authorized Protection Fund” for Penny — the 24-year-old former Marine charged with manslaughter within the demise of homeless man Jordan Neely — had eclipsed $1.8 million in donations by Sunday night.
“The outpouring of assist for Danny is at all times measured by the quantity raised, however what’s much more telling is that tens of 1000’s of individuals from all around the world have taken the time to donate,” Penny’s legal professional, Steven M. Raiser, wrote in an e-mail to The Submit.
“This stage of assist demonstrates that the scenario compelled upon him in that subway automobile earlier this month, and his subsequent arrest, has struck a chord within the psyche of New Yorkers and has been echoed nationwide,” Raiser wrote.
“The message being despatched by this huge exhibiting of assist is that any try to undermine the proper and obligation to guard each other towards an imminent menace can be challenged.”
Penny was charged Friday with second-degree manslaughter for allegedly choking and killing Neely, 30, a former street performer with an extended historical past of psychological sickness, throughout a Could 1 subway journey on an F prepare in Manhattan. He was launched on $100,000 bail.
Manhattan District Legal professional Alvin Bragg should now attempt to safe a grand jury indictment earlier than the case can proceed, Raiser mentioned.
Penny’s attorneys, who launched the GiveSendGo campaign on his behalf, have mentioned he didn’t intend to kill Neely when he put him the chokehold and was merely attempting to defend himself and fellow straphangers from a threatening homeless man.
The fundraiser had raised some $1.4 million by Saturday evening. A number of donors wrote that they have been praying for the previous infantry squad chief.
“This man is a hero in my eyes,” one nameless donor wrote. “He ought to get a medal for what he didn’t jail time … We have to take our Metropolis again. God bless this man for attempting to assist.”
Neely’s household has mentioned Penny ought to be tried for homicide.
“He by no means tried to assist [Neely] in any respect,” the Neely household’s attorneys, Donte Mills and Lennon Edward, wrote final week in a press release. “You can not ‘help’ somebody with a chokehold.”
The tail finish of the confrontation was caught on a bystander’s video. Within the clip, Penny wrapped his arms across the neck of the homeless Neely as different commuters held his arms.
Based on witness accounts, Neely was acting erratically and was threatening different passengers earlier than Penny stepped in.
Neely had a long history of mental illness and had a number of prior arrests.
Town medical expert dominated Neely’s demise a murder, noting he died as a consequence of “compression of neck (chokehold).”
The cash raised by the GiveSendGo marketing campaign will go to Penny’s protection crew at Raiser & Kenniff, based on the web page.
Any extra cash can be donated to a psychological well being advocacy program in New York Metropolis.