BREAKING: Daniel Penny Found Not Guilty in Subway Chokehold Death of Jordan Neely Days after Trial Judge Dismissed Manslaughter Charge — as Marine is Hit With Threats after Verdict

Daniel Penny has been acquitted of all charges in the chokehold death of Jordan Neely on a crowded New York City subway, RadarOnline.com can reveal.

A jury has cleared the marine vet of criminal wrongdoing in the case.

The decision comes days after the judge dismissed more serious charges.

On Friday, Judge Maxwell Wiley dismissed the manslaughter charge after jurors announced they were hopelessly deadlocked.

Penny had been looking at 15 years behind bars if convicted of manslaughter. Once that was dismissed, he faced up to four years in prison if convicted on the lesser count.

The 26-year-old was accused of using a deadly chokehold to restrain Neely, a 30-year-old homeless man, on a New York City subway in May 2023.

Neely was a schizophrenic and high on drugs when he was shouting death threats at subway passengers at the time, telling them someone was going to "die today" and that he didn't care about going to prison for life.

Penny pleaded not guilty from the start, maintaining that he stepped in and grabbed Neely from behind in a chokehold only to subdue him. His lawyer, Steven Raiser, had argued his client was trying to protect others in the subway car that fateful day.

Assistant Manhattan DA Dafna Yoran originally asked jurors to convict Penny of manslaughter, and during the trial warned the jury their verdict should be based on whether they themselves would be thankful for his intervention, or weigh testimony from his loved ones and supporters that he is a "good man."

She said: "What is so tragic about this case, is that even though the defendant started out doing the right thing… a man died. He was given all the signs he needed to stop. He ignored them. He must be held accountable for that."

Yoran added: "You're not here to decide whether you'd want to ride alone on the train with Jordan Neely. That is not what this case is about. The only thing you need to determine here is whether or not the evidence here proves the defendant killed Jordan Neely."

The decision does not affect a new civil lawsuit Neely's father filed just last week against Penny for negligent contact, assault and battery that led to his son's death.

The new lawsuit claims: "The aforesaid incident, injuries, and death were caused by reason of defendant Daniel Penny’s negligence."

Neely’s father, Andre Zachery, requested damages "in such sum as a jury may find reasonable, fair, and just."

Before issuing their decision, jurors had asked to look at a key video connected to the case that showed Penny's initial police interrogation at the Fifth Precinct building in Manhattan.

It would be the only time Penny would recall the events of that day firsthand.

Penny can be heard explaining: "Some guy came in, and he's like with his jacket off. And he's like, 'I'm gonna kill everybody. I'm gonna go to prison forever. I don't care.'"

The Marine said the homeless man was "talking gibberish" before he decided to take action.

He added: "I just kind of, like, grabbed him from behind."

Penny clarified: "He was acting like a lunatic, like a crazy person. And he was rolling around the floor. And, at that point, the train stopped. I was like, 'Someone call the cops,' and he's still, like, rolling around, still going crazy. I had two other guys kind of help me just kind of keep him from going nuts."

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