NEW YORK — Judge Maxwell Wiley informed the jury he is dismissing the manslaughter charge against Daniel Penny after the jury signaled twice it could not reach a unanimous verdict.
The judge sent the jury home for the weekend and told jurors they would return Monday to deliberate on the lesser charge of negligent homicide.
The judge said he was disinclined to speak to jurors at this stage of the trial.
Jurors had previously been instructed that they needed to reach a verdict on the top charge before they could consider the criminally negligent homicide charge.
Criminally negligent homicide, which carries punishments ranging from probation to up to four years in prison, involves engaging in serious “blameworthy conduct” while not perceiving such a risk.
NEW YORK — The jury twice indicated that it was unable to reach a unanimous decision, so Judge Maxwell Wiley told them he was dropping the manslaughter charge against Daniel Penny.
According to him, he will urge the jury to continue considering the lesser charge of whether Penny committed criminally negligent homicide in the death of homeless man Jordan Neely on the New York City subway last year on Monday.
Thomas Kenniff, the defense lawyer, objected to the move, claiming it might result in a “coercive or compromised verdict.”. The judge was once more urged to declare a mistrial.
The jury was sent home for the weekend by the judge, who instructed them to reconvene on Monday to consider the lesser charge of negligent homicide.
Wiley stated, “I don’t know if that makes a difference or not.”.
The defense claimed that an article had surfaced after the jury had left, stating that one juror had told a reporter that the deliberations had frustrated him.
Defense attorney Tom Kenniff stated, “It may just be fake news, but it’s a concern obviously.”.
At this point in the trial, the judge stated that he was not inclined to address the jury.
“Go ahead and investigate if you’d like,” Wiley said.
The judge’s ruling was made just hours after jurors in Manhattan wrote to him to express their inability to reach a manslaughter verdict. Jurors had previously been told that they could not consider the criminally negligent homicide charge until they had rendered a verdict on the primary charge.
Since Tuesday, the jury has been considering whether to find Penny guilty of Neely’s death. Penny, an ex-U. S. In May 2023, Neely got into a subway car in New York City and began screaming and begging for money. Marine put him in a chokehold for roughly six minutes.
The punishment for manslaughter is up to 15 years in prison and requires proof that the defendant killed someone else carelessly. The crime of criminally negligent homicide, which entails serious “blameworthy conduct” without realizing the risk, carries penalties that range from probation to up to four years in prison.
Previously, Wiley had encouraged the jurors to continue, praising them for being “very conscientious in your deliberations,” and pointing out that it’s normal to struggle to reach a vote.
According to Penny’s attorneys, he was defending himself and other subway users against a frantic, mentally ill man who was making frightening gestures and statements. According to the prosecution, Penny reacted excessively violently to a person he saw as a threat rather than a human being.
(This report was produced with assistance from ABC News and the Associated Press. ).
