Penny stated that he did not experience remorse or regret regarding the incident involving Jordan Neely.
Marine veteran Daniel Penny, who placed homeless man Jordan Neely in a fatal chokehold in May, has broken his silence regarding the incident.
Penny said he was “deeply saddened” by Neely’s passing in an interview with the New York Post published on Saturday.
Penny stated, “What happened to him is tragic.” “With any luck, we will be able to alter the system that has so terribly failed us.”
Penny, who was accused with a crime in relation to the incident, denied that he was racist for restraining Neely, a Black man. The veteran Marine stated categorically that the incident “had nothing to do with race.”
“I evaluate a person according to their demeanor. Penny elaborated, “I am not a white supremacist.” “I mean, it’s a little bit humorous. Everyone who has met me can attest that I adore all people and cultures.”
“You can tell by my history and my travels and exploits throughout the world. Before this occurred, I was planning a road journey across Africa,” Penny explained.
Penny told the Post that he was headed to the gym on May 1 when Neely boarded his metro car. Neely, who allegedly suffered from mental illness, began yelling about going to prison, being hungry, and being exhausted.
Passengers reported that Neely was yelling and behaving erratically when Penny placed a chokehold on him. Penny’s attorneys have argued that the Marine veteran restrained Neely to protect himself and other commuters.
Authorities are still determining the extent to which Neely posed a threat to train passengers. Juan Alberto Vazquez, a freelance journalist who filmed the incident, reported that Neely yelled and flung his jacket to the ground, but did not physically attack anyone.
However, an eyewitness told Fox News Digital that Penny was a “hero” and that Neely was shouting words such as “kill” and “bullet”
The retiree told Fox News Digital, “It was self-defense, and I believe in my heart that [Penny] saved many people that day who could have been injured.”
“I’m reading my novel on a train when all of a sudden I hear someone spewing this rhetoric. He stated, ‘I don’t care if I have to murder an F, I will. I’ll go to prison, I’ll take a bullet,'” explained the woman in her sixties.
The 24-year-old veteran told the Post that he had no regrets and was not humiliated of the incident.
Penny stated, “No, I always do what I believe is right.”
Penny is scheduled to return to court in July, and if convicted, she faces up to 15 years in prison.
