A 24-year-old New York City commuter might face involuntary manslaughter charges from the DA’s office after choking fellow passenger Jordan Neely, 30, to death on May 1, per the New York Post.
The potential defendant allegedly approached Neely from behind and put him in a chokehold after Neely began behaving erratically and verbally harassing other passengers. The choke was reportedly held for fifteen minutes, and resulted in Neely’s death. According to the Post, the medical examiner ruled the death a homicide earlier this week.
Shocking video shows NYC subway passenger putting unhinged man in deadly chokehold https://t.co/XvIW4eOETR pic.twitter.com/y6nPOsvHXk
— New York Post (@nypost) May 2, 2023
Neely was identified as a homeless man who reportedly suffered from severe mental illness issues, according to his aunt, per the Post. His aunt Carolyn Neely, 40, told the Post that her nephew spiraled into a serious depression after his mother was murdered during his teenage years — also by strangulation.
“It had a big impact on him. He developed depression and it grew and became more serious. He was schizophrenic, PTSD. Doctors knew his condition and he needed to be treated for that […] The whole system just failed him. He fell through the cracks of the system.”
New York City Comptroller Brad Lander condemned the act of vigilantism on social media, writing in a Tweet, “NYC is not Gotham. We must not become a city where a mentally ill human being can be choked to death by a vigilante without consequence. Or where the killer is justified & cheered.”
According to the Post, executive director of the Coalition for the Homeless, Dave Giffen also weighed in on the incident, stating, “The fact that someone who took the life of a distressed, mentally-ill human being on a subway could be set free without facing any consequences is shocking, and evidences the City’s callous indifference to the lives of those who are homeless and psychiatrically unwell.â€
The Neely family has set up a GoFundMe to cover funeral costs and related expenses.
