(NewsNation) — Steve Raiser, Daniel Penny’s attorney, told “Elizabeth Vargas Reports” on Monday that everyone on the now-infamous New York City subway ride with Penny feared Jordan Neely was going to kill someone.
The ex-Marine who is charged with killing a homeless man on a subway said he wasn’t “trying to choke him to death” when he jumped into action after Neely threatened passengers.
“You want to stop the attack from happening, and that was the situation here,” Raiser told Vargas. “There’s a theme throughout everybody’s testimony that has come forward so far that the words that he (Neely) was conveying was that he was going to kill somebody on that train and that he was willing to die,” Raiser added.
Penny’s lawyers released four short video clips Sunday giving the 24-year-old’s side of the story. In a series of videos, Penny reiterated his claim that he placed Neely, 30, in a fatal chokehold out of self-defense, and said he had no intention of taking Neely’s life in what he called a “scary situation.”
Penny is due back in court next month. If he’s convicted of second-degree manslaughter, the ex-Marine could face up to 15 years in prison.