Governor Ron DeSantis is standing behind Daniel Penny and called on Americans to donate to his legal defense fund in a tweet Friday evening. The 24-year-old Marine veteran had surrendered to authorities just hours before to face a second-degree manslaughter charge over the death of Jordan Neely. He faces a maximum of 15 years in prison if convicted.
The office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg filed the case against Penny.
In a statement, DeSantis called on Americans to defeat the Left’s pro-criminal agenda and “take back the streets.”
“We must defeat the Soros-Funded DAs, stop the Left’s pro-criminal agenda, and take back the streets for law-abiding citizens,” DeSantis said in a tweet, alongside a link to a GiveSendGo fundraiser for Penny’s legal defense fund.
We stand with Good Samaritans like Daniel Penny. Let’s show this Marine… America’s got his back.
Penny was released from custody Friday after posting a $100,000 bail. He is due back in court on July 17.
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We must defeat the Soros-Funded DAs, stop the Left's pro-criminal agenda, and take back the streets for law abiding citizens. We stand with Good Samaritans like Daniel Penny. Let’s show this Marine… America’s got his back.
https://t.co/uQXZuT19Mo— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantisFL) May 13, 2023
Shortly after the Governor’s statement, donations for the Marine vet began flooding in, with $20,000 being contributed in 23 minutes. As of Saturday morning, support for Penny’s legal defense fund has reached over $820,000.
“‘Leave no man behind.’ Just what I would expect from my Gov.” – Zero Fox Given (@zerofoxgiven21)
“This is an alpha move,” said one commenter. “I will continue to push for a red state governor to offer legal sanctuary to Penny, but DeSantis is once again leading the way.”
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Wow pic.twitter.com/hicx4QZXOD
— Pedro L. Gonzalez (@emeriticus) May 13, 2023
In a statement following Penny’s arraignment, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said he chose to bring charges after evaluating all of “the available facts and evidence” and said, “Jordan Neely should still be alive today.”
“[M]y thoughts continue to be with his family and loved ones as they mourn his loss during this extremely painful time.”
During court proceedings Friday, however, prosecutors admitted that Neely had menaced subway passengers before Penny intervened, describing the 30-year-old as “making threats and scaring people.”
“Several witnesses observed Mr. Neely making threats and scaring passengers,” said Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass.
Prior to his fatal encounter with Daniel Penny, Neely had been arrested on 44 different occasions for assault, attempted child abduction, drugs, fare beating, disorderly conduct, and indecent exposure. One witness to the altercation told The New York Post that she was praying for Penny, and confirmed that Neely had been threatening passengers.
“He said, ‘I don’t care. I’ll take a bullet, I’ll go to jail’ because he would kill people on the train… He said, ‘I would kill a motherf–ker. I don’t care. I’ll take a bullet. I’ll go to jail.’”
Alberto Vazquez, a freelance journalist who recorded the confrontation, also told the Post that Neely had been screaming at people in “an aggressive manner.”
“He said he had no food, he had no drink, that he was tired and doesn’t care if he goes to jail. He started screaming all these things, took off his jacket, a black jacket that he had, and threw it on the ground.”
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