Daniel Penny, the subway vigilante facing a second-degree manslaughter charge for choking Jordan Neely to death on a New York City train, wildly speculated to Fox News that “If [Neely] had carried out his threats, he would have killed somebody.” The outlet described the ex-Marine as “so traumatized” after the incident that he has not ridden the subway since. Penny was caught on camera strangling Neely, a homeless man and Michael Jackson impersonator, for several minutes in early May. His lawyers claim self-defense and that Penny didn’t mean to cause harm, even though videos show him seemingly ignoring onlookers’ calls of concern. The vigilante told Fox News he “was scared” that day and “saw older women and children” who were “terrified,” and while eyewitness accounts say Neely yelled about lacking food and water and not fearing jail, there is little evidence he posed a physical threat to other riders. Penny is free on a $100,000 bond, but called his arrest “humiliating.” If found guilty, he could face up to 15 years in prison. “It is what it is. That’s how things are playing out,” Penny said.
