LAST UPDATE | 12 May 2023

A US MARINE veteran appeared in court today on a manslaughter charge over the chokehold death of a mentally ill homeless man behaving erratically on New York City’s subway.

The death earlier this month of Jordan Neely, a Michael Jackson impersonator who often performed on the train, sparked outrage after it was caught on camera.

It brought into sharp focus two burning issues in America’s biggest city – mental illness among those living on the streets, and residents’ fears for their safety on the underground.

Daniel Penny was arraigned in the Manhattan criminal court after surrendering to police.

Thomas Kenniff, one of Penny’s lawyers, said Penny turned himself in “voluntarily and with the sort of dignity and integrity that is characteristic of his history of service to this grateful nation”.

In a brief statement to reporters outside the police station, Mr Kenniff said that he expected an arraignment later on Friday and that the process “will unfold from there”.

Asked how Penny was feeling, Mr Kenniff said his client “is dealing with the situation, like I said, with the sort of integrity and honour that is characteristic of who he is and characteristic of his honourable service in the United States Marine Corps”.

Penny’s attorneys have said he acted in self-defence when he restrained Neely.

According to an onlooker, Neely, who is black, had been screaming and begging for money aboard the train, but had not been physical with anyone.

Penny, who is white, was questioned by police in the aftermath but was released without charges.

Friends of Neely said the former subway performer had been dealing with homelessness and mental illness in recent years.

He had several arrests to his name, including the 2021 assault of a 67-year-old woman leaving a subway station.

A second-degree manslaughter charge in New York will require the jury to find that a person has engaged in reckless conduct that creates an unjustifiable risk of death, and then consciously disregards that risk.

The law also requires that conduct to be a gross deviation from how a reasonable person would act in a similar situation.