Daniel Penny To Face Manslaughter Charge In Jordan Neely Chokehold: DA

NEW YORK CITY — The subway rider seen on video putting Jordan Neely in a fatal 15-minute chokehold is expected to face criminal charges this week, prosecutors confirm.

Daniel Penny, 24, will be arrested for manslaughter and is expected to be arraigned Friday in Manhattan Criminal Court, a spokesperson told Patch.

“This is a solemn and serious matter that ended in the tragic loss of Jordan Neely’s life," the District Attorney's office said in a statement.

Penny's lawyers did not respond to NBC's request for comment, but previously told ABC their client acted to protect himself from Neely, who they said was behaving erratically.

"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," reads the statement from the Raiser and Kenniff law firm.

"Daniel never intended to harm Mr. Neely and could not have foreseen his untimely death."

But protesters who have taken to New York City streets day after day say mental illness should not have cost Neely his life.

Those protests have seen multiple New Yorkers arrested, among them a professional photojournalist and two Harlem women temporarily charged with terrorism for climbing onto subway tracks.

The Manhattan District Attorney's office later dropped those charges.

Neely, a beloved Michael Jackson impersonator, died on a Manhattan F train near the Broadway-Lafayette subway on May 1.

Police took Penny into custody but released him without pursuing charges, officials said.

Neely's death was later ruled a homicide in a report the District Attorney's office pledged to study carefully.

"As part of our rigorous ongoing investigation, we will review the Medical Examiner’s report, assess all available video and photo footage, identify and interview as many witnesses as possible, and obtain additional medical records," prosecutors said.

"This investigation is being handled by senior, experienced prosecutors and we will provide an update when there is additional public information to share."

This news comes days after Mayor Eric Adams gave a 14-minute address on Neely's death that did not include Penny's name, the words chokehold or police. It did include the suggestion that Neely would still be alive had he been detained by the city against his will.

Neely's parents issued their own statement this week condemning Penny for his actions and a public statement they called a "character assassination."

"The truth is, he knew nothing about Jordans [sic] history when he intentionally wrapped his arms around Jordan's neck, and squeezed and kept squeezing," they wrote.

"Mayor Eric Adams, please give us a call. The family wants you to know that Jordan matters."