Daniel Penny, the former Marine is facing charges of second-degree manslaughter following the death of convicted criminal Jordan Neely on a New York City subway.
Penny surrendered himself at a police precinct and made a court appearance on Friday to answer the criminal charges. He was later released on a $100,000 bond without entering a plea.
His legal team initiated a fund with the intention of covering the 24-year-old Long Island resident’s legal expenses, including potential future civil lawsuits and defense-related costs.
The fundraising effort is taking place on GiveSendGo, a platform previously associated with individuals charged in connection with the January 6th Capitol protests and supporters of Kyle Rittenhouse, the latter of whom was eventually acquitted on homicide charges over the deaths of two Black Lives Matter rioters.
The fundraising page explains:
Daniel Penny is, a twenty-four-year-old college student and decorated Marine veteran, facing a criminal investigation stemming from him protecting individuals on a NYC subway train from an assailant who later died.
Funds are being raised to pay Mr. Penny’s legal fees incurred from any criminal charges filed and any future civil lawsuits that may arise, as well as expenses related to his defense. All contributions are greatly appreciated. Any proceeds collected which exceed those necessary to cover Mr. Penny’s legal defense will be donated to a mental health advocacy program in New York City.
The campaign to defend Penny was given a significant boost with the backing of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who tweeted a link to the fundraising effort and encouraged people to donate.
“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,” DeSantis wrote. “Let’s show this Marine… America’s got his back.”
As of Saturday evening, the crowdfunding campaign for Penny has already surpassed $1.2 million in donations.
Following the subway incident, lawyers for Penny released a statement arguing he acted in self defense and that he “never intended to harm” Neely, whlie pointing to the victim’s history of violence and mental illness:
Earlier this week Daniel Penny was involved in a tragic incident on the NYC Subway, which ended in the death of Jordan Neely. We would first like to express, on behalf of Daniel Penny, our condolences to those close to Mr. Neely,’ the press release begins.
Mr Neely had a documented history of violent and erratic behavior, the apparent result of ongoing and untreated mental illness. 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. Daniel never intended to harm Mr Neely and could not have foreseen his untimely death.’
For too long, those suffering from mental illness have been treated with indifference. We hope that out of this awful tragedy will come a new commitment by our elected officials to address the mental health crisis on our streets and subways.
The groundswell of support for Penny from conservatives points to growing divisions over law and justice in 21st century America, as well as issues around mental health and economic inequality faced by millions of people. However, the incident has so far failed to spur a response similar to the death of George Floyd, which led to months of rioting and violence by the Black Lives Matter movement, when the country was supposed to be facing an unprecedented threat from the Chinese coronavirus pandemic.