According to NBC, Daniel Penny was acquitted of criminally negligent homicide in the chokehold death of Jordan Neely, a homeless man with mental illness, on a New York City subway train.

The jury deadlocked on the more serious charge of manslaughter, leading to its dismissal. Penny could have faced up to four years in prison.

The case sparked debates on safety in the subway system, homelessness, and mental illness, with opinions divided along political and racial lines. Prosecutors argued that Penny’s actions were reckless and unjustified, while his defense claimed he acted to protect passengers. 

Dafna Yoran, an assistant prosecutor with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, in her closing argument, said, “You obviously cannot kill someone because they are crazy and ranting and looking menacing.”

“No matter what it is that they are saying.” She also said that Penny “could have easily restrained” Neely “without choking him to death.”