The jury in Daniel Penny’s trial announced on Friday that they were unable to reach a judgment on the first count of manslaughter in the second degree following three days of discussion. Prosecutors decided to drop the charge, allowing the trial to proceed only on a lesser accusation of criminally negligent murder, highlighting the delicate nature of this case.
After a fatal altercation with 30-year-old Black man Jordan Neely on a New York City subway train, 26-year-old white Marine veteran Penny was taken into custody. Neely, according to witnesses, was agitated and yelling but unarmed. Neely died as a result of Penny’s use of a chokehold, a technique known for its deadly outcomes. Penny was charged with manslaughter by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, which sparked intense discussion.
As many struggle with the stark differences in the way justice is administered, the judicial developments take place. Penny, who was praised as a hero by some subway witnesses, is on trial for what many activists consider to be an unwarranted act of violence with racist motivations. Attempts to portray Penny’s actions as self-defense have mainly obscured Neely’s past as a vulnerable, homeless Black man who frequently impersonated Michael Jackson.
The withdrawn manslaughter case feels like another instance of the legal system’s inability to hold people accountable for acts of violence against Black lives to many who interpret the episode as representative of more serious systemic problems. Critics have drawn attention to the case’s racially charged dynamics: Neely paid with his life when Penny, a trained Marine, applied a chokehold that is known to be lethal to a guy who did not immediately pose a physical threat.
The message this conveys is being fiercely debated because the trial now rests on the lower accusation of criminally negligent homicide, which carries a lighter penalty. It supports the idea that Black lives are not valued by the legal system, according to others. Not only was Jordan Neely’s death a terrible accident, but it also resulted from society’s disregard for Black people’s humanity, particularly those who were dealing with poverty and mental health concerns.
Some have portrayed Penny’s actions as a good Samaritan’s required intervention, while others view them as a sobering reminder of how easily Black lives are considered expendable. In addition to one man’s destiny, this case raises the question of whether justice can ever be done in a system that is so intricately entwined with racial injustices.
