The judge presiding over Daniel Penny’s trial has dropped the top manslaughter charge at the prosecution’s request after jurors deadlocked on a verdict on Friday.
The jury will now deliberate a lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide, Judge Maxwell Wiley ruled while urging jurors to “go home and think about something else” before continuing deliberations.
Earlier in the day, the jury deliberating in the Daniel Penny manslaughter trial informed Judge Maxwell Wiley that they were unable to reach a unanimous verdict on the top charge of manslaughter in the subway death of Jordan Neely.
Penny, a Marine veteran, is accused of using a fatal chokehold on Neely during a subway altercation on May 1, 2023.
The Manhattan jurors, deliberating since Tuesday, had sent a note to the judge stating their impasse. Judge Wiley responded by delivering an Allen charge, a legal instruction encouraging jurors to re-evaluate differing opinions and attempt to reach a consensus.
He praised the panel’s conscientious efforts but reminded them that failing to agree could result in a retrial with a new jury.
The case centres on Penny’s actions during an encounter with Neely, a homeless man with a history of mental health struggles. Penny’s defence argued he acted to protect himself and others from Neely, who witnesses described as making erratic and threatening remarks.
Prosecutors contend that Penny used excessive force, failing to consider Neely as a person in crisis.
As per the New York times, Jurors were instructed to first address the manslaughter charge, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years, before moving to the lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide.
The latter carries penalties ranging from probation to four years in prison. Wiley indicated that he might allow deliberations on the second charge if the deadlock would have persisted on manslaughter.
The trial has drawn significant public attention, with demonstrations outside the courthouse and broader debates over race, mental health, and public safety.
Neely, 30, was a sometime subway performer with a tragic life story: His mother was killed and stuffed in a suitcase when he was a teenager. His adult life spiraled into homelessness, psychiatric hospitalisations, drug abuse and criminal convictions, including for assaulting people at subway stations, according to AP.
Penny, 26, went on to study architecture. He is white. Neely was Black. The case became a flashpoint in the nation’s debate over racial injustice and crime, as well as the city’s ongoing struggle to deal with homelessness and mental health crises in a transit system used by millions of New Yorkers every day.
The jury’s deliberations have been detailed and thorough, including requests to review video evidence, medical testimony, and definitions of legal terms like recklessness and negligence.
Jurors asked for clarification on how to define a “reasonable person” and whether such a person would have believed Neely was about to use physical force. Judge Wiley told them it was their responsibility to decide what constitutes a reasonable reaction under the circumstances.
During the monthlong trial, the anonymous jury heard from witnesses, police, pathologists, a Marine Corps instructor who trained Penny in chokehold techniques, as well as Penny’s relatives, friends and fellow Marines. Penny chose not to testify. The jury has made several requests to the judge since entering deliberations Tuesday, The New York Times reported.
Discussions are expected to continue into next week if no resolution is reached.
