NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — Daniel Penny, the 24-year-old marine veteran who allegedly fatally choked a homeless man to death on a Manhattan subway car Monday, issued a statement through his lawyers Friday regarding the incident.
The statement from the law firm Kenniff, P.C. is the first time Penny addressed the death. It came after an online activist publicly identified him for the first time on Thursday and press confirmed his identity on Friday.
In the statement, the lawyers said Penny “did not intend to harm” Neely, but confirmed he is the man shown on video holding Neely in a chokehold.
“Daniel never intended to harm Mr. Neely and could not have foreseen his untimely death,” said the law firm.
The statement portrays the incident as an act of self defense.
“We would like to express, on behalf of Daniel Penny, our condolences to those close to Mr. Neely,” wrote Penny’s lawyers. “Mr. Neely had a documented history of violent and erratic behavior, the apparent result of ongoing untreated mental illness. When Mr. Neely began aggressively threatening Daniel Penny and the other passengers, Daniel, with the help of others, acted to protect themselves, until help arrived.”
Neely was yelling at riders that he didn't have any food when he was attacked, but he had not assaulted anyone, according to witnesses.
The statement ends with a call to action for politicians to provide better mental health services.
“For too long, those suffering from mental illness have been treated with indifference,” said Penny’s lawyers. “We hope that out of this awful tragedy will come a new commitment by our elected officials to address the mental health crisis on our streets and subways.”
Video showed Penny putting the 30-year-old Michael Jackson impersonator in a chokehold until he lost consciousness on Monday. New York medical examiners confirmed that Neely died from compression of the neck and deemed his death a homicide on Wednesday.
Police initially arrested Penny, but released him without filing any charges.
The killing sparked protests demanding Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg file charges against Penny, who lives in West Babylon, New York.
Demonstrators gathered at Barclays Center and marched over the Manhattan bridge on Thursday night.
Protesters gathered outside Bragg’s Manhattan office around noon on Friday to call for charges and hundreds met at Washington Square Park around 6 p.m. for a march demanding better mental health care and accountability.
Another protest is scheduled on Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Broadway-Lafayette subway station, where Neely was killed.
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