The Marine charged with accidentally killing a homeless man on a New York City subway in May, Daniel Penny, is speaking out again and strongly denying any racism claims. Based on the public defense he is now offering, Mr. Penny’s legal team will likely rely on the goodwill of those subway car riders that he helped protect. 

Mr. Penny has been charged with manslaughter after he used a chokehold to restrain a belligerent homeless man, Jordan Neely, who was menacing fellow straphangers on the New York City subway last month. The Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, indicted Mr. Penny after an uproar from Black Lives Matter activists and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who called Mr. Penny’s conduct “disgusting.”

 In a video released by his attorneys, Mr. Penny says that attacks on his character — including being labeled a racist — could not be further from the truth considering that he helped restrain Neely, with the help of people of color, and was defending people of color from Neely’s erratic behavior. 

“Some people say this was about race, which is absolutely ridiculous,” Mr. Penny says. “I didn’t see a Black man threatening passengers — I saw a man threatening passengers, a lot of whom were people of color. The man who helped restrain Neely was a person of color. A few days after the incident, I read in the papers that a woman of color came out and called me a ‘hero.’ I don’t believe that I’m a hero.”

For the first time, Mr. Penny also details what he saw happen on the subway car immediately after Neely stepped on the train — something that was not captured on the viral video showing the chokehold as passengers were exiting. 

“A man came on — stumbled on — who appeared to be on drugs,” Mr. Penny says. Neely “ripped his jacket off and threw it at the people sitting down to my left,” which included women and children. Mr. Penny says that Neely repeated three threats that frightened both himself and his fellow passengers: “I’m gonna kill you, I’m prepared to go to jail for life, and I’m willing to die,” Neely allegedly yelled.

Mr. Penny also says claims that the chokehold lasted for “15 minutes” were “not true.” Neely had gotten on the train and began shouting his threats, which led passengers to subdue him. Mr. Penny notes that there are just “a few minutes” between subway stops, so the “whole interaction lasted less than 5 minutes.”

“There is a clear rise and fall of his chest, indicating that he is breathing,” Mr. Penny says, repeating that he never intended to harm Neely but rather to protect him from himself. “I acted in a way that would protect other passengers,” Mr. Penny says in the video. 

Mr. Penny was charged with manslaughter in the second degree. Under New York criminal law, manslaughter in the second degree is defined as recklessly, even if unintentionally, killing another person. A conviction carries a sentence of up to 15 years and substantial fines. 

Since his arrest, Mr. Penny has raised more than $2.8 million for his legal defense fund. The donation page where individuals give money to the fund states that the money will be used “to pay Mr. Penny’s legal fees incurred from any criminal charges filed and any future civil lawsuits that may arise, as well as expenses related to his defense.”

Following the incident, Mr. Penny became a cause célèbre among many law-and-order conservatives. Governor DeSantis said shortly after Mr. Penny’s arrest that he had donated to the legal defense fund. “We must defeat the Soros-Funded DAs, stop the Left’s pro-criminal agenda, and take back the streets for law abiding citizens,” the Florida governor wrote on Twitter. “We stand with Good Samaritans like Daniel Penny. Let’s show this Marine … America’s got his back.”