Jordan Neely was a ‘frequent flyer’ in the criminal justice system: Lexie Rigden
Attorney Lexie Rigden joined ‘Fox & Friends Weekend’ to provide professional analysis of the death of Jordan Neely, who died in a chokehold on an NYC subway.
Police were inundated with 911 calls last week as Marine veteran Daniel Penny allegedly fatally choked Jordan Neely, who was acting erratically and threatening passengers in a New York City subway car, officials said.
Neely's tragic May 1 death, which was caught on cellphone video, has sparked a wave of protests in the Big Apple and highlighted a safety crisis on the largest subway system in the U.S.
Last Monday, at 2:26 p.m., police received a report of a physical fight on the F train at the Broadway-Lafayette Street subway station in Manhattan. A minute later, another call came in reporting "threats," according to police.
Also at 2:27 p.m., a rider reported a "customer armed with a knife or gun."
An assault in progress was called in at 2:29 p.m. followed a minute later by another report of threats. The 911 call log is not a complete record but a summary of the reports police received.
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Screenshot from bystander video showing Jordan Neely being held in a chokehold on the New York City subway. (Luces de Nueva York/Juan Alberto Vazquez via Storyful)
Neely, 30, a Michael Jackson impersonator who suffered from mental illness, was acting aggressively and screaming at other passengers – but hadn't attacked anyone, according to a freelance journalist who recorded the deadly confrontation.
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Penny, 24, pulled Neely to the ground from behind and held him in a chokehold as two other men helped restrain the agitated man. Neely initially flailed his arms, but within minutes, can be seen going limp in the disturbing footage.
At one point, a fellow rider can be heard in the video telling the men that it looked like Neely had defecated on himself and warning them to be careful not to kill him.
Screenshot from bystander video showing Jordan Neely being held in a chokehold on the New York City subway. (Luces de Nueva York/Juan Alberto Vazquez via Storyful)
The Fire Department said it received a call for help at 2:39 p.m. and arrived on the scene seven minutes later.
The city's medical examiner said Wednesday that Neely died from compression of the neck.
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Demonstrators, who have clashed with police, have called for murder charges against Penny, while others have defended the veteran as a good Samaritan who stepped in to protect other riders.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has said senior prosecutors are conducting a "rigorous" investigation.
Neely had a lengthy criminal record, which included dozens of arrests. In 2019, Neely attacked Filemon Castillo Baltazar, 68, on the platform of the W. 4th St. Station in Greenwich Village, according to the New York Daily News.
"Out of nowhere, he punched me in the face," the victim told the local newspaper. He said he'd seen Neely before looking for food in the trash bins.
Jordan Neely does his Michael Jackson impersonation in Times Square, Oct. 27, 2009. Neely was killed on Monday, May 1, 2023, on a New York City subway. (Andrew Savulich/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)
Neely was arrested again in 2021 for a subway assault on a 67-year-old woman, whom he allegedly hit in the face as she exited an East Village subway station, according to court papers.
The woman suffered a broken nose and orbital bone. Neely pleaded guilty and received an alternative-to-incarceration program that let him dodge jail.
If he had completed the program, the felony assault would have been reduced to a misdemeanor, but he skipped a compliance court date, and a warrant was issued for his arrest on Feb. 22.
Alvin Bragg will likely bring charges against the Marine veteran accused of killing Jordan Neely on the subway with a chokehold on May 1, 2023, experts told Fox News Digital. (Alex Kent via Getty/Paul Martinka)
Penny's attorney, Thomas Kenniff, said in statement Friday that Neely had a documented history of violent and erratic behavior.
"When Mr. Neely began aggressively threatening Daniel Penny and the other passengers, Daniel, with the help of others, acted to protect themselves until help arrived," the attorney said. "Daniel never intended to harm Mr. Neely and could not have foreseen his untimely death."
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The Manhattan DA's Office is asking anyone who witnessed the fatal encounter or has information about it to call 212-335-9040.
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