Jordan Neely – latest: NYC mayor says Neely ‘did not deserve to die’ as officials investigate subway chokehold

New York City Mayor Eric Adams addressed the death of Jordan Neely at a closed-press event on Wednesday, more than one week after the 30-year-old homeless New Yorker was fatally choked on a Manhattan subway traincar.

“Jordan Neely did not deserve to die,” the mayor said in remarks outlining his administration’s efforts to support people experiencing mental health crises.

A statement from the White House on Tuesday said the events surrounding Neely’s death “demand a thorough investigation,” as Manhattan prosecutors and police continue to investigate the case.

Widely shared footage from 1 May shows a men identified as Daniel Penny, a 24-year-old former US Marine, wrapping his arm around Neely’s neck on the floor of the traincar. He has not been charged with a crime.

The incident has prompted city, state and federal officials, advocacy groups and protesters to demand an arrest and call attention to urgently needed support for mental health services and people experiencing homelessness.

A veteran New York photojournalist was arrested on Monday night during a vigil and protest, one of several in New York City in the week after Neely’s death. More than 20 people have been arrested during protests in the wake of Neely’s death.

Key Points

• Eric Adams: ‘Jordan Neely did not deserve to die'

• White House calls for ‘thorough investigation’ into Jordan Neely’s death

• Photojournalist among people arrested during protests marking one week after Neely’s death

• Jordan Neely’s family attorneys condemn ‘admission of guilt'

• Neely’s death is a ‘wake-up call’ for urgent response to mental health crisis, governor says

19:03 , Alex Woodward

We’re closing live coverage of the aftermath of Jordan Neely’s death but The Independent will be closely following the case with the Manhattan district attorney’s office and responses from officials and advocacy groups.

Thank you for reading.

Alvin Bragg explains why DA’s office has not publicly commented on the case

19:00 , Alex Woodward

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg addressed his office’s investigation into Jordan Neely’s death in his first public remarks on the incident on Tuesday.

Typically, district attorneys do not publicly comment on pending cases to avoid disrupting or tainting investigations.

“Sometimes people peer into the silence and look at that as if the office isn’t doing anything or it’s not important,” Mr Bragg said. “It’s quite the contrary. It’s because it’s our solemn obligation to assess the facts, apply the facts to the law and it’s how gravely and seriously we take that that we don’t speak.”

Neely family asks Al Sharpton to deliver eulogy at Harlem funeral service

18:40 , Alex Woodward

The family of Jordan Neely has requested Rev Al Sharpton to deliver a eulogy at a funeral service on 19 May at Harlem’s Mount Neboh Baptist Church. The church has asked for privacy on behalf of the family.

“This is an unfathomable and unimaginable tragedy,” Rev Dr Johnnie Green, the church’s senior pastor, told New York’s Pix11.

“This is not my usual terrain, and as we come together in the spirit of healing, action, and perseverance. I can think of no one better, no one more equipped to meet this moment with that grace and guidance than Rev. Sharpton,” he added.

Full story: Eric Adams addresses death of homeless New Yorker after fatal chokehold

18:01 , Alex Woodward

In his first official remarks on the death of Jordan Neely more than one week after he was fatally choked on a New York City subway train car, Mayor Eric Adams did not mention how the homeless New Yorker died or discuss the events surrounding his death.

He stressed, however, that “Jordan Neely did not deserve to die.”

“One of our own is dead – a Black man, Black like me. A man named Jordan, the name I gave my son,” the mayor said in remarks on 10 May. “A New Yorker who struggled with tragedy, trauma and mental illness, a man whose last words were crying for help.”

‘Jordan Neely did not deserve to die’: Eric Adams addresses fatal subway chokehold

Eric Adams: ‘There are more Jordans out there'

16:53 , Alex Woodward

Mayor Eric Adams continued his remarks laying out his administration’s vision for mental health treatment, including a controversial agenda that allows authorities to involuntary admit people who are considered too mentally ill to be able to care for themselves into mental health treatment.

“There are more Jordans out there,” Mr Adams said. “People who are loved, people who are in need of treatment and compassion.”

“Jordan Neely’s life mattered,” he continued. “He was suffering from severe mental illness. But that was not the cause of his death. His death was a tragedy that should never have happened.”

Mr Adams notably did not discuss the way in which Neely died, after another subway passenger placed him in a fatal chokehold. The city’s medical examiner determined the cause of death was a homicide. No charges have been filed.

“My heart goes out to Jordan’s family who is suffering great pain from the uncertainty of the circumstances of his death,” Mr Adams said. “Too many Black and brow families beat the brunt of a system long overdue for reform. Our work starts with acknowledging that we must reverse the effects of decades of disinvestment in housing, healthcare and social services.”

Eric Adams: ‘Jordan Neely did not deserve to die'

16:40 , Alex Woodward

Mayor Eric Adams introduced his remarks on the death of Jordan Neely noting a “week of strong emotions” among New Yorkers in the aftermath of his death.

He noted that while law enforcement continues to investigate the fatal chokehold that led to his death, the mayor said that “Jordan Neely did not deserve to die.”

“A New Yorker who struggled with tragedy, trauma and mental illness, a man whose last words were crying for help,” he said. “

Neely’s death has “devastated his family and shocked his fellow New Yorkers”, adding that “one thing we can control is how our city responds to that tragedy.”

His remarks have called for support around mental health services while outlining the administration’s other efforts.

Eric Adams to address Jordan Neely’s death

16:18 , Alex Woodward

Mayor Eric Adams will deliver an address on the death of Jordan Neely at 11.30am ET.

Jordan Neely’s uncle slams Eric Adams

15:44 , Alex Woodward

The uncle of the man who was fatally choked on a Manhattan subway car on 1 May said he does not have anything to say to Mayor Eric Adams, who said on Monday night that has tried reaching out to the family.

“I don’t have anything to say to Mayor Adams — I don’t know any mayor who parties and bull**** like Adams,” Chrostopher Neely told The New York Post. “Nobody Black that’s in the neighborhood really believes in him. It’s more him partying at night and coming home at 4 or 5am.”

As 11 people were arrested at a vigil and protest demanding action after Neely’s death, the mayor told a reporter for The City during an unrelated event that he has “reached out” to Neely’s family “several times to give them my condolences.”

Christopher Neely said neither he nor Jordan’s father or grandparents have spoken to the mayor.

A statement on Monday morning from attorneys representing the Neely family urged the mayor to call them.

“The family wants you to know that Jordan matters,” the statement adds. “You seem to think others are more important than him.”

Homeless advocacy group to hold vigil outside City Hall for Jordan Neely and deaths of unhoused New Yorkers

15:36 , Alex Woodward

In February, 74,762 people were sleeping in the city’s shelter system. That figure does not include the thousands of New Yorkers on the city’s streets and subways

Of the 640 deaths among homeless New Yorkers in 2021, 151 were unsheltered.

In the deadliest year on record for New York’s homeless population, 815 people died while homeless in 2022.

VOCAL-NY, an organisation that advocates for unhoused New Yorkers, will hold a vigil outside City Hall on Thursday afternoon to recognise those deaths and the death of Jordan Neely, who was fatally choked on a Manhattan F train on 1 May.

“Instead of providing New Yorkers with basic stability, [Mayor Eric Adams and Governor Kathy Hochul] have defunded our social systems, driven up our rents... all while manufacturing a crime panic that scapegoats the most marginalized,” the group said in a statement.

Foster care reform advocate and friend of Neely: ‘Jordan wanted a home’

14:00 , Alex Woodward

A community activist who says he grew up with Jordan Neely in foster care said the 30-year-old homeless New Yorker was failed by the same foster system that failed him.

Now an organiser and advocate for foster care reform, Larry Smith moved through 23 different foster homes and endured physical, psychological, sexual and emotional abuse, according to his website.

He told New York’s Pix11 that they met after they were placed in a foster facility in the Marcy Houses in Brooklyn and were moved from home to home over four years.

“Four years of betrayal, rejection. Four years of nervousness. Four years of abandonment. Four years of pain,” Mr Smith told Pix11.

They both aged out of care and into homelessness, he said.

“Jordan could have been housed but nobody cares,” Mr Smith told Gothamist.

“Jordan never wanted money,” he told Pix11. “Jordan wanted food. Jordan wanted resources. Jordan wanted a home.”

ICYMI: AOC discusses Jordan Neely’s death and urgency to respond to homelessness crisis

13:00 , Alex Woodward

In an interview with New York magazine’s The Cut, New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez excoriates city and state officials who have refused to condemn the killing of Jordan Neely in precise terms, after Mayor Eric Adams rebuked the congresswoman for her own statements addressing his death.

“I would like everyone to pretend that was their son,” she told the magazine. “I would like anyone to look at that video, see their son, and see if they would say the same thing.”

In the interview, she addresses the failure of public policies to support people experiencing homelessness and their mental health, compounded by rapidly growing costs of living in a city with some of the highest housing costs globally.

“I think in order to stand up for Jordan Neely, we’d have to admit that public decisions made by leaders have been failing,” she said. “Jordan Neely was killed by public policy. He was killed by the demonizing of the poor by many of our leaders. He was killed by the same reluctance for people to see him as human that leaders are exhibiting right now, even in his death.”

She also repeatedly stressed that there is nothing that can justify killing a person, “especially if they are unarmed and not a physical threat to anyone.”

“There’s a hypocrisy to the way many officials talk about public safety. All of these responses are acting as though Neely was the aggressor here, when he was the one who was murdered,” she added. “There’s all this talk about making our public spaces safer, and a person literally killed another human being on the subway. When you create a situation where harming a certain class of people may be excused, then we incentivize this kind of behavior. Anybody can point to anybody else and say, ‘Oh, well, I was scared of them.’”

Manhattan prosecutor leading investigation led case against Trump Organization

12:00 , Alex Woodward

A spokesperson for the Manhattan district attorney’s office told The Independent last week that “senior, experienced prosecutors” are investigating Neely’s death.

“This is a solemn and serious matter that ended in the tragic loss of Jordan Neely’s life,” press secretary Douglas Cohen said. “As part of our rigorous ongoing investigation, we will review the [medical examiner’s] report, assess all available video and photo footage, identify and interview as many witnesses as possible, and obtain additional medical records.”

The investigation is being led by veteran homicide prosecutor Joshua Steinglass, who led the successful prosecution of the Trump Organization on charges that included 17 tax crimes, including conspiracy and falsifying business records.

Mr Steinglass, a 25-year veteran of the office, has also been at the centre of other high-profile and sensitive cases. He secured convictions against two members of the neo-fascist gang the Proud Boys in 2019 and an undercover police officer involved with an assault in 2015.

Jordan Neely family attorneys respond to statement from Daniel Penny’s legal team

11:00 , Alex Woodward

In a statement shared with The Independent on 5 May, attorneys for Daniel Penny said Jordan Neely “had a documented history of violent and erratic behavior, the apparent result of ongoing and untreated mental illness” and “began aggressively threatening” Mr Penny and others on the train.

Attorneys for Neely’s family criticised the statement, which they said was neither “an apology nor an expression of regret.”

“It is a character assassination and a clear example of why he believed he was entitled to take Jordan’s life,” reads the statement on 8 May from attorneys Donte Mills and Lennon Edwards.

Jordan Neely family attorneys condemn statement from Daniel Penny’s legal team

White House calls for ‘thorough investigation’ into Jordan Neely’s death

10:00 , Alex Woodward

The death of Jordan Neely demands a thorough investigation, according to a statement from President Joe Biden’s administration, speaking publicly for the first time on the killing of the 30-year-old homeless New Yorker who was placed in a fatal chokehold on a Manhattan subway train last week.

In widely shared video footage, a man identified as 24-year-old Daniel Penny is seen restraining Neely on the floor of an F train while his arm is wrapped around Neely’s neck for several minutes.

“Jordan Neely’s killing was tragic and deeply disturbing,” White House spokesperson Robyn Patterson said in a statement shared with The Independent on 9 May.

White House calls for ‘thorough investigation’ into Jordan Neely’s death

Press association defends photojournalist arrested during protests

09:00 , Alex Woodward

The New York Press Photographers Association described Stephanie Keith as “an intrepid photojournalist” in a statement of support after her arrest while photographing protests on Monday night.

“We support our colleague and believe that a review of the evidence and circumstances will compel the Manhattan DA to drop any charges against her,” according to a statement obtained by the Associated Press.

Video shows Ms Keith attempting to use a crosswalk before Chief of Patrol John Chell, one of the highest-ranking members of the NYPD, appears to push her back and shout “lock her up” as he moves her towards other officers to be placed under arrest.

She was handcuffed and detained in a police van before her release with a summons.

During a press conference on Monday night, Mr Chell claimed that she “interfered” with NYPD’s arrests. Ms Keith said in a post on her Instagram account that she was standing with other photojournalists far from where the arrests were taking place.

Two dozen people arrested during protests over Jordan Neely’s death

08:00 , Alex Woodward

Police arrested at least 11 people and discovered what officials called a Molotov cocktail during a vigil and protest marking one week after the death of Jordan Neely, a 30-year-old homeless street performer who was placed in a fatal chokehold inside a Manhattan F train.

Photojournalist Stephanie Keith was filmed being arrested and placed into a New York City Police Department van near protests at Houston Street and Broadway on 8 May. A press pass and camera equipment are clearly visible in widely shared footage of her arrest.

Those arrests follow the arrests of 13 others during protests on Saturday, as demonstrators continue to press city officials and law enforcement for justice in the wake of Neely’s death. No charges have been filed in the case.

NYPD arrests photojournalist at protest demanding arrest for Jordan Neely’s death

AOC and MTA chief urges passengers to ‘deescalate’

07:00 , Alex Woodward

Janno Lieber, head of the MTA, said on Friday that he is waiting a decision from prosecutors in the death of Jordan Neely, but urged passengrs to “find a way to deescalate” if “challenges” emerge on the subways.

“We’re gonna renew our efforts to make sure that people understand that when you’re in the subway together, they’re going to be challenges, when you’re in the public space together there are going to be challenges, but we have to find a way to deescalate,” he said.

He called the video showing Neely’s final moments while he is placed in a chokehold “really troubling and upsetting.”

New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also told New York magazine that “de-escalation is a skill set.”

“It is something that every single one of us could learn. It is something that could even be a matter of public education and public-health campaigns,” she added. “Sometimes a person may be at a 10 emotionally, and the smallest gesture of humanity can help them out.”

Who is Jordan Neely?

06:00 , Alex Woodward

Following his mother’s murder when he was 14 years old, Jordan Neely came to be known as an expert Michael Jackson impersonator, honing his act at Washington Irving High School in Manhattan before performing on the subway and in Times Square, his skills evident in a number of videos widely shared on social media in the wake of his death.

But his mental health appeared to deteroriate in recent years, as he experienced homelessness and repeatedly evaded homeless outreach services and healthcare as he came in contact with law enforcement.

Jordan Neely, the man killed in a NYC subway chokehold

White House calls for ‘thorough investigation’ into Jordan Neely’s death

04:00 , Alex Woodward

The death of Jordan Neely demands a thorough investigation, according to a statement from President Joe Biden’s administration, speaking publicly for the first time on the killing of the 30-year-old homeless New Yorker who was placed in a fatal chokehold on a Manhattan subway train last week.

“Jordan Neely’s killing was tragic and deeply disturbing,” White House spokesperson Robyn Patterson said in a statement shared withThe Independent on 9 May.

White House calls for ‘thorough investigation’ into Jordan Neely’s death

One of the attorneys representing Daniel Penny challenged Alvin Bragg for Manhattan DA

03:00 , Alex Woodward

Daniel Penny, who was filmed with his arm around Jordan Neely’s neck, has retained legal representation from attorneys with the firm Raiser and Kenniff. Mr Penny has not been charged with any crime.

Thomas Kenniff unsuccessfully ran for Manhattan district attorney as a Republican in 2021, ultimately losing to Alvin Bragg, who received more than 82 per cent of the vote.

In a debate against Mr Bragg that year, he slammed “misguided criminal justice policies that embrace criminals at the expense of victims,” what he said has resulted in an “increase in violent crime and a decrease in quality of life like nothing we have experienced in years.”

Neely’s death is a ‘wake-up call’ for urgent response to mental health crisis, governor says

02:00 , Alex Woodward

New York Governor Kathy Hochul said the death of Jordan Neely should serve as a “wake-up call” for government officials to urgently respond to a growing mental health crisis.

Her remarks on Monday came as she announced a $1bn pldge to update the state’s mental health programmes.

“People fall through the cracks. Sometimes they’re visible, sometimes you see them,” she said in remarks from Buffalo.

“And we think about the young man, Jordan Neely, who was in New York City in the throes of a crisis who was tragically killed on the subway this week. His death is clear evidence that we need support,” she added. “We need alternatives for these individuals so they’re not regulated to that kind of life. So those of us in government, it is a wake up call.”

Jordan Neely’s death recalls the outcome of an infamous 1980s case

01:00 , Alex Woodward

Prosecutors could weigh criminal charges against the man who put Jordan Neely in a fatal chokehold, though that likely will not include the charges of murder, according to legal experts.

Charges could depend on whether a “reasonable” person would have acted similarly.

A person who uses deadly force must not only prove that they feared for their own life or someone else’s but that any reasonable person would have felt the same way, under New York’s penal code.

“Suppose the Marine says, ‘I honest to God thought I had no choice but to save someone,’ the question would be whether an objectively reasonable person in his circumstances would have felt the same,” according to Mark Bederow, a former assistant district attorney in Manhattan, speaking to NBC New York.

The state’s highest court clarified that statute in 1986 in a case involving the Bernhard Goetz’s 1984 shooting of four teenagers on a subway.

The white pasenger shot four young Black men after one of them asked him for $5. He claimed that he thought he was being robbed. A jury ultimately acquitted Goetz of attempted murder but convicted him of carrying an unlicensed handgun.

ICYMI: Al Sharpton demands criminal charges in Jordan Neely’s death

Wednesday 10 May 2023 00:00 , Alex Woodward

In an address on Saturday, the Rev Al Sharpton urged criminal charges to be brought against people involved in the chokehold death of Jordan Neely on 1 May.

“If you do not prosecute ... you will set a standard of vigilantism that we cannot tolerate,” he said from Harlem. “The precedent alone is a threat to all of us. We cannot allow this lawlessness to go unchecked.”

He said charges should not only be brought against Daniel Penny but also the two subway passengers who appeared in a video alongside him.

“You’re not going to choke this young man to death and not let us stand up and raise our voices,” Mr Sharpton said. “From a civil rights point of view, we are petitioning [that] the choker and the two folks helping him are all brought before a grand jury.”

The New York medical examiner’s officer declared Neely’s death a homicide; it is not a criminal determination but manner of death.

About that ‘Molotov cocktail'

Tuesday 9 May 2023 22:49 , Alex Woodward

New York City Police Department officials reported that a “Molotov cocktail” was recovered on Monday night during protests calling for an arrest for Jordan Neely’s death.

That weapon appears to be a Topo Chico bottle with a napkin or fabric inside with a small amount of unknown liquid. Officials have not revealed what that liquid is.

A post about the bottle on the NYPD’s official Twitter account also received a “community note” from the platform that casts doubt on whether it is a Molotov cocktail.

“While these materials could technically be used in the making of a molotov cocktail, this picture does not show a molotov cocktail, or provide evidence that one was made,” the note reads.

Mayor Eric Adams blamed “outside agitators”; the incident also has drawn comparisons to false claims from NYPD officials about pallets of bricks used by protesters in 2020 and unfounded claims from NYPD officers that a restaurant poisoned their milkshakes.

Press association defends photojournalist arrested during protests

Tuesday 9 May 2023 22:00 , Alex Woodward

The New York Press Photographers Association described Stephanie Keith as “an intrepid photojournalist” in a statement of support after her arrest while photographing protests on Monday night.

“We support our colleague and believe that a review of the evidence and circumstances will compel the Manhattan DA to drop any charges against her,” according to a statement obtained by the Associated Press.

Video shows Ms Keith attempting to use a crosswalk before Chief of Patrol John Chell, one of the highest-ranking members of the NYPD, appears to push her back and shout “lock her up” as he moves her towards other officers to be placed under arrest.

She was handcuffed and detained in a police van before her release with a summons.

During a press conference on Monday night, Mr Chell claimed that she “interfered” with NYPD’s arrests. Ms Keith said in a post on her Instagram account that she was standing with other photojournalists far from where the arrests were taking place.

AOC: ‘ I would like anyone to look at that video, see their son, and see if they would say the same thing'

Tuesday 9 May 2023 21:34 , Alex Woodward

In an interview with New York magazine’s The Cut, New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez excoriates city and state officials who have refused to condemn the killing of Jordan Neely in precise terms, after Mayor Eric Adams rebuked the congresswoman for her own statements addressing his death.

“I would like everyone to pretend that was their son,” she told the magazine. “I would like anyone to look at that video, see their son, and see if they would say the same thing.”

In the interview, she addresses the failure of public policies to support people experiencing homeless and their mental health, compounded by rapidly growing costs of living in a city with some of the highest housing costs globally.

“I think in order to stand up for Jordan Neely, we’d have to admit that public decisions made by leaders have been failing,” she said. “Jordan Neely was killed by public policy. He was killed by the demonizing of the poor by many of our leaders. He was killed by the same reluctance for people to see him as human that leaders are exhibiting right now, even in his death.”

She also repeatedly stressed that there is nothing that can justify killing a person, “especially if they are unarmed and not a physical threat to anyone.”

“There’s a hypocrisy to the way many officials talk about public safety. All of these responses are acting as though Neely was the aggressor here, when he was the one who was murdered,” she added. “There’s all this talk about making our public spaces safer, and a person literally killed another human being on the subway. When you create a situation where harming a certain class of people may be excused, then we incentivize this kind of behavior. Anybody can point to anybody else and say, ‘Oh, well, I was scared of them.’”

‘Jordan wanted a home’

Tuesday 9 May 2023 21:02 , Alex Woodward

A community activist who says he grew up with Jordan Neely in foster care said the 30-year-old homeless New Yorker was failed by the same foster system that failed him.

Now an organiser and advocate for foster care reform, Larry Smith moved through 23 different foster homes and endured physical, psychological, sexual and emotional abuse, according to his website.

He told New York’s Pix11 that they met after they were placed in a foster facility in the Marcy Houses in Brooklyn and were moved from home to home over four years.

“Four years of betrayal, rejection. Four years of nervousness. Four years of abandonment. Four years of pain,” Mr Smith told Pix11.

They both aged out of care and into homelessness, he said.

“Jordan could have been housed but nobody cares,” Mr Smith told Gothamist.

“Jordan never wanted money,” he told Pix11. “Jordan wanted food. Jordan wanted resources. Jordan wanted a home.”

At least two dozen people have been arrested at protests within a week after Neely’s death

Tuesday 9 May 2023 20:13 , Alex Woodward

At least 24 people have been arrested after several protests in New York City in the wake of Jordan Neely’s death, as protesters and vigils demanding justice for his killing were met with a heavy police presence and aggressive police posturing.

Thirteen people were arrested during protests on Saturday on charges including resisting arrest, trespass, assault and “unlawful interference with a railroad train.”

On Monday night, at least 11 others were arrested following a vigil and demonstration marking one week after Neely’s killing.

Protesters marked the contrast between the law enforcement response to the demonstrations and the response to Neely’s death. No charges have been filed as prosecutors continue to investigate; the man identified as Daniel Penny who placed Neely in the fatal chokehold was initially questioned by police and released. His attorneys said in a statement that Mr Penny and other passengers “acted to protect themselves, until help arrived” and “could not have foreseen his untimely death.”

Eric Adams: ‘My heart breaks’ for loss of Jordan Neely

Tuesday 9 May 2023 19:30 , Alex Woodward

Mayor Eric Adams addressed the death of Jordan Neely in remarks to the National Urban League’s Safe and Just Communities Summit on Tuesday.

“My heart breaks when we lost young Jordan,” he said, according to Ethan Stark-Miller with amNewYork.

The mayor also has a son named Jordan, which he pointed out to The City last night.

Full story: White House calls for ‘thorough investigation’ into Jordan Neely’s death

Tuesday 9 May 2023 19:00 , Alex Woodward

The death of Jordan Neely demands a thorough investigation, according to a statement from President Joe Biden’s administration, speaking publicly for the first time on the killing of the 30-year-old homeless New Yorker who was placed in a fatal chokehold on a Manhattan subway train last week.

White House calls for ‘thorough investigation’ into Jordan Neely’s death

White House responds to Jordan Neely’s death for the first time

Tuesday 9 May 2023 18:30 , Alex Woodward

President Joe Biden’s administration is calling for a thorough investigation into the death of Jordan Neely, the 30-year-old homeless New Yorker who was placed in a fatal chokehold on a Manhattan subway train last week.

“Jordan Neely’s killing was tragic and deeply disturbing,” according to a statement from a White House spokesperson obtained by The Independent on 9 May.

“Our hearts go out to his family and loved ones. We firmly believe that the events surrounding his death demand a thorough investigation,” the statement added.

The White House statement is the first to address Neely’s death on 1 May.

Witnesses recount subway chokehold

Tuesday 9 May 2023 17:34 , Alex Woodward

Several people who witnessed Daniel Penny placing Jordan Neely in a chokehold on the F train platform on 1 May recounted their experience to Hell Gate, including attempts to intervene, confusion and shock at what was taking place, and the complicated feelings of shame and regret that they were unable to stop what was happening after later digesting what they witnessed.

One man attempted to splash water on Neely’s face but was waved away. Another witness was not certain what was happening, as others tried to explain why Neely was being restrained or seek to justify what was happening in front of them, according to the witness.

“It seemed like he knew what he was doing,” they said. “And if you know what you’re doing, and you’re doing it with dozens of witnesses, why would you have an intent to take someone’s life? Like, there’s safety in a crowd.”

The witness added that “there just was not a lot of compassion for the person lying on the floor, not breathing.”

Full story: NYPD arrests 11 people including photojournalist at protest demanding arrest for Jordan Neely’s death

Tuesday 9 May 2023 17:00 , Alex Woodward

Police arrested at least 11 people and discovered what officials called a Molotov cocktail during a vigil and protest marking one week after the death of Jordan Neely, a 30-year-old homeless street performer who was placed in a fatal chokehold inside a Manhattan F train.

Photojournalist Stephanie Keith, who has contributed to The New York Times, Bloomberg and Reuters, among other outlets, was filmed being arrested and placed into a New York City Police Department van near protests at Houston Street and Broadway on 8 May. A press pass and camera equipment are clearly visible in widely shared footage of her arrest.

“I was flabbergasted,” she wrote in an Instagram post after her release later that night. She said she was standing with other photographers, apart from police making arrests. “For some reason they chose me from that situation,” she added.

“I said, ‘I’m press’ and they said, ‘You’re not, you’re arrested,’” she told The New York Daily News.

NYPD arrests photojournalist at protest demanding arrest for Jordan Neely’s death

Former Manhattan DA: Charges in Neely’s death may not come for some time

Tuesday 9 May 2023 16:32 , Alex Woodward

A week may seem like a long time for prosecutors to make a decision whether to charge Daniel Penny for the fatal chokehold against Jordan Neely, “but it’s not as important as getting to the right decision on charging using the right process,” according to former Manhattan district attorney Cy Vance, speaking to Gothamist.

“And that requires more time, often, than some people feel is justified. But generally speaking, it’s a longer process than people appreciate,” he said.

Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg could file a felony complaint against Mr Penny or any other person believed to be involved with Neely’s death, at which an arrest could be made and an arraignment help.

Prosecutors also could go to a grand jury, presenting evidence in the case to determine whether charges are warranted. Legal experts have suggested that may a more likely scenario.

Attorneys for Mr Penny said that he has not yet been notified about a grand jury, which would be legally required if one is convened in the case.

Photojournalist ‘flabbergasted’ after arrest

Tuesday 9 May 2023 15:16 , Alex Woodward

In a post on Instagram after her release, photojournalist Stephenie Keith expressed her shock when she was arrested while covering a protest and vigil demanding justice for the death of Jordan Neely near the Broadway-Lafayette subway stop on Monday night.

“Some people chose to chant and commune on the subway platform and some to speak out on street level. The journalists on the subway platform heard arrests were going down so we all ran upstairs to witness several ongoing arrests,” she wrote.

“Later, I was arrested! I couldn’t believe it, I was flabbergasted,” she said.

She said she was standing with another group of photographers, far from arrests. Police later said she was “interfering” with arrests.

“For some reason they chose me from that situation,” she added.

“I feel loved by my community and although there was a bad event that brought it about, I feel loved and supported by you!” she said.

Eric Adams says he has tried to contact Neely’s family

Tuesday 9 May 2023 14:37 , Alex Woodward

Mayor Eric Adams, during an unrelated event on Monday night, said that he has tried to reach the family of Jordan Neely “several times”.

“Reached out to them several times to give them my condolences,” he said at Russo’s on the Bay in Howard Beach, according to footage from The City.

A statement from Neely’s attorneys on Monday asked the mayor to “give us a call.”

“The family wants you to know that Jordan matters,” attorneys Donte Mills and Lennon Edwards wrote in a joint statement on Monday morning.

Photojournalist among people arrested during protests marking one week after Neely’s death

Tuesday 9 May 2023 14:22 , Alex Woodward

New York City Police Department officers arrested photojournalist Stephanie Keith during protests demanding an arrest in the killing of Jordan Neely, a 30-year-old homeless street performer who died in a fatal chokehold on 1 May on a Manhattan F train.

Ms Keith, who has contributed to The New York Times, Bloomberg and Reuters, was arrested for “interfering” in the arrests of protesters, according to police.

At least 10 people were arrested near Houston Street and Broadway following a vigil and protests marking one week since Daniel Penny pinned down Neely in a chokehold. The city’s medical examiner determined the cause of death was homicide. No charges have been filed in Neely’s death, and police and the Manhattan district attorney’s office are investigating.

Eric Adams has not talked to Neely’s family, attorneys say

Tuesday 9 May 2023 14:00 , Alex Woodward

A statement from attorneys for the family of Jordan Neely suggests that Mayor Eric Adams has not talked with the family in the wake of his death.

“Mayor Eric Adams please give us a call. The family wants you to know that Jordan matters,” attorneys Donte Mills and Lennon Edwards wrote in a joint statement on Monday morning.

The Independent has requested comment from the mayor’s office.

The mayor is no stranger to public comment about subway violence, but he has declined to condemn lethal violence when it comes to the passenger who put Neely in a fatal chokehold.

“Each situation is different and how a passenger. We have so many cases where passengers assist other riders,” he said on CNN last week. “We cannot just blatantly say what a passenger should or should not do in a situation like that, and we should allow the investigation to take its course.”

Tuesday 9 May 2023 13:00 , Alex Woodward

New York Governor Kathy Hochul said the death of Jordan Neely should serve as a “wake-up call” for government officials to urgently respond to a growing mental health crisis.

Her remarks on Monday came as she announced a $1bn pldge to update the state’s mental health programmes.

“People fall through the cracks. Sometimes they’re visible, sometimes you see them,” she said in remarks from Buffalo.

“And we think about the young man, Jordan Neely, who was in New York City in the throes of a crisis who was tragically killed on the subway this week. His death is clear evidence that we need support,” she added. “We need alternatives for these individuals so they’re not regulated to that kind of life. So those of us in government, it is a wake up call.”

Who is Daniel Penny?

Tuesday 9 May 2023 23:00 , Alex Woodward

According to US Marine Corps records and a LinkedIn profile, Mr Penny joined the Marines in 2017 after graduating from West Islip High School, a hamlet roughly 36 miles outside of Manhattan in Suffolk County.

Public records confirm Mr Penny’s former address at Marine Corps Base Camp LeJeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina. He served as an infantryman and a sergeant.

He left the Marines in 2021. He wrote in a service industry job site that his military experience helped him discover that he is “passionate” about “helping, communicating, and connecting to different people from all over the world.”

Everything we know about Daniel Penny, filmed fatally choking Jordan Neely

The man who filmed the fatal chokehold explains what he saw

Tuesday 9 May 2023 12:00 , Alex Woodward

Journalist Juan Alberto Vasquez was traveling on the F train on his way from Brooklyn to Yonkers and intended to switch trains at the Broadway-Lafayette stop in Manhattan when he filmed Daniel Penny wrapping his arm around Jordan Neely’s neck in a chokehold for several minutes. Neely’s death was ruled a homicide by the city’s medical examiner due to the compression against Neely’s neck.

He told Curbed that Neely arrived on the train when it stopped at Second Avenue, stood in the middle of the train car, and then “started yelling that he didn’t have food, that he didn’t have water” and that “he was tired, that he didn’t care about going to jail.”

“I tried to start filming from that moment, but I didn’t because I couldn’t see anything — it was too crowded. And then I heard him take off his jacket. He bundled it up and just threw it on the floor, very violently. You could hear the sound of the zipper hitting the floor,” he added. “At that moment, when he threw the jacket, the people who were sitting around him stood up and moved away. He kept standing there and he kept yelling.”

At that moment, Mr Penny “came up behind him and grabbed him by the neck,” he said.

“They both fell. And then in like 30 seconds, I don’t know, we got to Broadway-Lafayette, and they were just there on the floor,” he said. “You ask how many people out of 100 would have dared to do something like that, and I think that 98 will say: ‘No, I would wait to see one more sign that indicates aggression.’”

Hundreds of New Yorkers died while unhoused in recent years

Tuesday 9 May 2023 11:00 , Alex Woodward

In February, 74,762 people were sleeping in the city’s shelter system. That figure does not include the thousands of New Yorkers on the city’s streets and subways.

Last year, three people in New York were stabbed, one fatally, while sleeping on the street. A shooting spree across New York and Washington DC resulted in the killings of two men, and three others were injured.

That year, at least 15 homeless New Yorkers were murdered. A year earlier, 22 homeless New Yorkers were murdered. Of the 640 deaths among homeless New Yorkers in 2021, 151 were unsheltered.

In the deadliest year on record for New York’s homeless population, 815 people died while homeless in 2022.

What he know about Daniel Penny

Tuesday 9 May 2023 10:00 , Alex Woodward

While much is known about Jordan Neely’s legal issues and mental health history, less is known about the man who placed him in a fatal chokehold.

According to US Marine Corps records and a LinkedIn profile, Daniel Penny joined the Marines in 2017 after graduating from West Islip High School, a hamlet roughly 36 miles outside of Manhattan in Suffolk County.

Public records confirm Mr Penny’s former address at Marine Corps Base Camp LeJeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina. He served as an infantryman and a sergeant.

He left the Marines in 2021. He wrote in a service industry job site that his military experience helped him discover that he is “passionate” about “helping, communicating, and connecting to different people from all over the world.”

Everything we know about Daniel Penny, filmed fatally choking Jordan Neely

Who is Jordan Neely?

Tuesday 9 May 2023 09:00 , Alex Woodward

Following his mother’s murder when he was 14 years old, Jordan Neely came to be known as an expert Michael Jackson impersonator, honing his act at Washington Irving High School in Manhattan before performing on the subway and in Times Square, his skills evident in a number of videos widely shared on social media in the wake of his death.

But his mental health appeared to deteroriate in recent years, as he experienced homelessness and repeatedly evaded homeless outreach services and healthcare as he came in contact with law enforcement.

Jordan Neely, the man killed in a NYC subway chokehold

Jordan Neely family attorneys call statement from Daniel Penny’s legal team ‘character assassination’

Tuesday 9 May 2023 08:00 , Alex Woodward

Attorneys for the family of Jordan Neely have criticised a statement from the legal team representing Daniel Perry, the 24-year-old former US Marine who placed the 30-year-old homeless street performer in a fatal chokehold on a Manhattan subway car one week ago.

“Daniel Penny’s press release is not an apology nor an expression of regret. It is a character assassination and a clear example of why he believed he was entitled to take Jordan’s life,” reads the statement on 8 May from attorneys Donte Mills and Lennon Edwards.

In a statement shared with The Independent on 5 May, attorneys for Mr Penny said Neely “had a documented history of violent and erratic behavior, the apparent result of ongoing and untreated mental illness” and “began aggressively threatening” Mr Penny and others on the train.

Mr Penny’s attorneys said Mr Penny and other passengers “acted to protect themselves, until help arrived” and “never intended to harm Mr Neely and could not have foreseen his untimely death” on 1 May.

Jordan Neely family attorneys condemn statement from Daniel Penny’s legal team

New York prosecutors investigate Jordan Neely’s death as ex-Marine hires Alvin Bragg’s former rival

Tuesday 9 May 2023 07:00 , Alex Woodward

A potential criminal charge against Daniel Penny could include second-degree manslaughter or criminally negligent homicide, according to legal experts.

Under New York’s “justification” law, a person can use physical force when their safety is at risk, including during incidents of self defense or the defense of a third party.

Prosecutors or a grand jury likely will determine, after reviewing evidence from witness testimony and surveillance cameras, whether there was any such justification.

Mr Penny is being represented by the firm Raiser and Kenniff; Thomas Kenniff unsuccessfully ran for Manhattan district attorney as a Republican in 2021, ultimately losing to Alvin Bragg, who received more than 82 per cent of the vote.

Prosecutors investigate Jordan Neely’s death as ex-Marine hires Bragg’s former rival

Law enforcement agencies largely ban chokeholds

Tuesday 9 May 2023 06:00 , Alex Woodward

Lethal chokeholds like the the one that led to Jordan Neely’s death are increasingly banned in police departments across the country.

More than half the nation’s law enforcement ment agencies explicitly ban the use of neck restraints, also known as “carotid restraints” and more commonly referred to as chokeholds or strangleholds.

The US Department of Justice instituted a federal-wide policy that explicitly forbids them in 2021.

The subway passenger who tackled and choked Neely last Monday appeared to use a similar lethal restraint. The New York City medical examiner determined that the compression against his neck caused Neely’s death, which was ruled a homicide.

Those restraints can compress the trachea, which blocks air to the lungs, and the carotid arteries on the side of the neck, major vessels that provide blood to the brain.

Cutting off that blood flow can make someone lose consciousness within seconds and kill them within minutes. Losing consciousness also can be an indication of brain injury.

‘New York was not a ‘safe city’ for Jordan Neely

Tuesday 9 May 2023 04:00 , Alex Woodward

Noah Berlatsky writes:

New York was not safe for Jordan Neely | Voices

Everything we know about the ex-Marine filmed choking Jordan Neely in fatal subway incident

Tuesday 9 May 2023 03:00 , Alex Woodward

In a statement shared with The Independent at 7.30pm on 5 May, attorneys for Daniel Penny said that when Jordan Neely “began aggressively threatening Daniel Penny and the other passengers, Daniel, with the help of others, acted to protect themselves, until help arrived.”

“Daniel never intended to harm Mr Neely and could not have foreseen his untimely death,” the statement added. “For too long, those suffering from mental illness have been treated with indifference. 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.”

Here is what we know about the 24-year-old former US Marine, who has not been charged with any crime connected to the incident:

Everything we know about Daniel Penny, filmed fatally choking Jordan Neely

Jordan Neely struggled after his mother’s murder, family attorney says

Tuesday 9 May 2023 02:00 , Alex Woodward

Jordan Neely suffered from “demons” after his mother was murdered in 2007, according to a lawyer for the family.

Neely was 14 years old when his mother Christine Neely was strangled, stuffed in a suitcase and left on the Henry Hudson Parkway in New York by her former partner.

Family members say he fell into a deep depression and never fully recovered from the tragedy, and was homeless at the time of his death.

Jordan Neely struggled after his mother’s murder, family attorney says

Protesters return to subway platform where Neely died, one week later

Tuesday 9 May 2023 01:00 , Alex Woodward

One week after Jordan Neely’s death, protesters have returned tothe Broadway-Lafayette subway station where the train carrying Neely had arrived.

A large police presence has arrived at the station, where demonstrators have also set up a candles and gave remarks.

At least 13 people were arrested during a demonstration demanding justice for Neely’s death on Saturday.

Will a grand jury be involved?

Tuesday 9 May 2023 00:30 , Alex Woodward

Prosecutors could bring manslaughter charges against a subway passenger who choked a homeless man to death, according to legal experts, as New Yorkers plead for justice in the wake of the killing of Jordan Neely on a Manhattan F train.

A grand jury could determine whether criminal charges are brought against the man who was filmed with his arm wrapped around Neely’s neck, according to officials speaking with several New York outlets.

A law enforcement official close to the investigation told ABC News that the case is likely to go to a grand jury, which would convene to determine whether criminal charges are warranted.

Prosecutors investigate Jordan Neely’s death as ex-Marine hires Bragg’s former rival

MTA chief urges passengers to ‘deescalate'

Monday 8 May 2023 23:00 , Alex Woodward

Janno Lieber, head of the MTA, said on Friday that he is waiting a decision from prosecutors in the death of Jordan Neely, but urged passengrs to “find a way to deescalate” if “challenges” emerge on the subways.

“We’re gonna renew our efforts to make sure that people understand that when you’re in the subway together, they’re going to be challenges, when you’re in the public space together there are going to be challenges, but we have to find a way to deescalate,” he said.

He called the video showing Neely’s final moments while he is placed in a chokehold “really troubling and upsetting.”

Emergency calls from MTA outline response to chokehold incident

Monday 8 May 2023 22:28 , Alex Woodward

An F train operator called the MTA’s Rail Control Center at 2.25pm on 1 May to report an unruly passenger was being subdued by other passengers, according to an outline of the response to Jordan Neely’s death from the city’s public transit agency.

Two minutes later, the centre notified police and other MTA personnel.

At 2.36pm, the train operator reports that NYPD arrived on the scene, waiting for EMS.

NYPD declared the train a crime scene at 2.47pm. Neely was pronounced dead at Lenox Health Greenwich Village.

Full story: Jordan Neely family attorneys call statement from Daniel Penny’s legal team ‘character assassination

Monday 8 May 2023 21:30 , Alex Woodward

Attorneys for the family of Jordan Neely have criticised a statement from the legal team representing Daniel Perry, the 24-year-old former US Marine who placed the 30-year-old homeless street performer in a fatal chokehold on a Manhattan subway car one week ago.

“Daniel Penny’s press release is not an apology nor an expression of regret. It is a character assassination and a clear example of why he believed he was entitled to take Jordan’s life,” reads the statement on 8 May from attorneys Donte Mills and Lennon Edwards.

Jordan Neely family attorneys condemn statement from Daniel Penny’s legal team

Eric Adams has not talked to Neely’s family, attorneys say

Monday 8 May 2023 20:51 , Alex Woodward

A statement from attorneys for the family of Jordan Neely suggests that Mayor Eric Adams has not talked with the family in the wake of his death.

“Mayor Eric Adams please give us a call. The family wants you to know that Jordan matters,” attorneys Donte Mills and Lennon Edwards wrote in a joint statement on Monday morning.

The Independent has requested comment from the mayor’s office.

The mayor is no stranger to public comment about subway violence, but he has declined to condemn lethal violence when it comes to the passenger who put Neely in a fatal chokehold.

“Each situation is different and how a passenger. We have so many cases where passengers assist other riders,” he said on CNN last week. “We cannot just blatantly say what a passenger should or should not do in a situation like that, and we should allow the investigation to take its course.”