Daniel Penny, the former Marine who ended up killing homeless man Jordan Neely while trying to restrain Neely, as he and others in the train thought that Neely was threatening them, has broken his silence on the incident with an interview.
He gave that interview to the New York Post. In it, he made clear that the whole thing had nothing, in his view, to do with race. Speaking on that, he said, “This had nothing to do with race. I judge a person based on their character. I’m not a white supremacist. I mean, it’s, it’s a little bit comical. Everybody who’s ever met me can tell you, I love all people, I love all cultures. You can tell by my past and all my travels and adventures around the world. I was actually planning a road trip through Africa before this happened.”
Continuing, he said that the threats Neely was making and the way he was acting wasn’t like “anything I’d experienced before.” So, in his view, “This was different, this time was much different.” Continuing on that point, he added, “I can tell you that the threats, the menacing, the terror that Jordan Neely introduced to that train has already been well documented. I don’t think it’s going to even be controverted. There are numerous witnesses from all different walks of life who have absolutely no motive to do anything other than to recount what actually happened. They are uniform in their recollection of events.”
And why was he on the train that fateful day? “I was going to my gym. There’s a pool there. I like to swim. I was living in the East Village. I take the subway multiple times a day. I think the New York transit system is the best in the world and I’ve been all over the world,” he said.
He then, when asked what he would say if speaking to Jordan Neely’s family, said that the “system had desperately failed,” telling the interviewer, “I’m deeply saddened by the loss of life. It’s tragic what happened to him. Hopefully, we can change the system that’s so desperately failed us.”
Despite that conciliatory message, Penny added that he has nothing to be ashamed of because he was doing what he though was right, saying, “I don’t, I mean, I always do what I think is right.”
He then added that, in the face of massive criticism from media outlets and people like Al Sharpton, he is trying to remain philosophical and stoic, saying, “If you’re faced with all these challenges, you have to remain calm. What’s the point of worrying about something, worrying is not going to make your problems disappear. I attribute this to my father and grandfather. They are very very stoic.”
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Fortunately for Penny, his family is sticking with him in the face of the aforementioned media onslaught. Speaking about that, he said: “My mom is OK. My sisters understand. They all support me.”
I’ve been in touch with Daniel’s team. He’s obviously been down.
The support you all are showing is lifting his spirits.
Don’t let DA Alvin Bragg’s bullshit go unnoticed.
Jordan Neely only received 4 months for attempting to kidnap a 7 year old little girl.
Daniel Penny is… pic.twitter.com/BmVAVUSqVm
— Amiri King (@AmiriKing) May 12, 2023
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video