A former U.S. Marine will be charged in the fatal shooting of a homeless man on a New York City subway, the Manhattan district attorney said.
Daniel Penney, 24, will be arrested on Friday and formally charged with causing the death of Jordan Neely after strangling the 30-year-old.
Mr Penny’s lawyers say he could not have known that his actions to subdue Mr Neely would lead to his death.
The incident, which took place on Monday, May 1, was captured on mobile phone footage.
“We can confirm that Daniel Penney will be arraigned on a charge of second-degree murder,” a spokeswoman for the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said in a statement.
“We cannot provide any additional information until it is presented in Manhattan Criminal Court.”
Witnesses said Mr. Neely had been aggressive toward other subway passengers, but had not physically assaulted anyone before Mr. Penny was strangled.
Video captured by a freelance journalist on the train shows the former Marine holding Mr Neely by the throat for two minutes and 55 seconds.
According to JEE News, Mr Penny told other riders to call 911 during the struggle with Mr Neely.
The former Marine was questioned and released by police in New York on the day of the incident.
In a statement earlier this month, Mr. Penny’s lawyers expressed their condolences to Neely’s family, saying Mr. Penny and the other passengers acted in self-defense.
They said Mr Neely’s behavior was “the visible result of an ongoing and untreated, mental illness”, which prompted Mr Penny and others to “fend for themselves until help arrived”.
It is unclear whether charges will be brought against two other unidentified men who were also seen restraining Mr Neely in the online video.
A witness to the altercation said Mr Neely was shouting about hunger and thirst. Police sources also told JEE News that Mr. Neely was allegedly acting erratically.
In a statement earlier this week, Neely’s family said Mr Penny “needs to stay in jail”.
“The family wants you to know that Jordan matters,” he said.
Mr. Neely was a Michael Jackson impersonator who often performed in Times Square.
He had several prior felonies, which New York City Mayor Eric Adams said underscores the need to improve the mental health system so it can better protect people like him.
According to US media reports, Mr Neely had 42 arrests for charges including fare evasion, theft and assaults on three women.
Her mother, Christy Neely, was killed in 2007 by her boyfriend, who was sentenced to 30 years in prison in 2012, according to the Jersey Journal.
After his mother’s death, Mr. Neely began experiencing mental health problems, his aunt, Caroline Neely, told the New York Post.
His death sparked city-wide protests and demands for justice.
The New York City medical examiner ruled Mr. Neely’s death a homicide resulting from “neck compression.”
