The medical examiner who analyzed Jordan Neely’s body after Daniel Penny kept him in a chokehold on an uptown F train last year could not identify any other reasonable explanation for his death besides compression of his neck, she testified during Penny’s Manhattan criminal trial on Friday.
“It is your opinion, if Mr. Neely’s neck was not compressed, he would not have died?” Assistant District Attorney Dafna Yoran asked.
“Yes,” replied Dr. Cynthia Harris with the chief medical examiner’s office.
Harris’s testimony on Friday is critical for prosecutors, who need to establish that Penny caused Neely’s death. She was the final witness in the prosecution’s case. Penny’s defense attorneys are expected to call their own witnesses starting Monday.
Penny has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide charges in Neely’s death. On May 1, 2023, Penny wrapped his arm around Neely’s neck, pulled him to the floor of the train and continued to hold on for about six minutes, according to evidence at his trial. Neely was pronounced dead at a hospital soon afterward. Penny told detectives that he put Neely in a chokehold because he was yelling threats and “acting like a lunatic.” He also said he was trying to restrain Neely until police arrived at the next station — not kill him.
But Harris said the chokehold prevented oxygen from traveling to Neely’s brain, causing him to lose consciousness and ultimately die. She said the oxygen was likely cut off in part by pressure on one side of Neely’s neck. Oxygen flow could also have been blocked from pressure under Neely’s chin, which the medical examiner said could have pushed Neely’s tongue or other tissue into his throat. She added that that type of blockage would only require a small amount of force.
Over the course of about four hours on Thursday and Friday, Harris walked jurors through some of the mechanics of the body, explaining in detail how people breathe and what can happen if airflow is obstructed. She showed diagrams from textbooks and explained medical terms, like hemorrhage and capillaries. As jurors watched videos of the incident, she pointed out moments when Neely’s appearance suggested his body was starving for oxygen — like his abdomen rising and falling, his face turning purple and his veins bulging. The medical examiner also noted pools of liquid that formed on Neely’s pants, which she said were likely urine excreted during the death process.
While videos and photos of the chokehold appeared on screens throughout the courtroom, Neely’s father buried his head.
Harris also analyzed images of Neely’s body from the autopsy and pointed out the damage she observed. She noted bleeding on the inside of his throat and pools of blood in his eyes. Jurors also looked at photos of Neely’s neck, which showed red scratch marks. Harris said those were likely self-inflicted, as Neely tried to remove Penny’s arm.
Penny’s defense attorneys have tried to cast doubt on Harris’ assessment, arguing in their opening statement that Neely could have died from the synthetic cannabinoids in his system or a condition he had called sickle cell trait.
Harris said she didn’t think either of those could have caused Neely’s death. She said synthetic cannabinoids — which are stimulants — likely would have killed Neely through a cardiac arrhythmia, cutting off blood to the heart. She said that would have shut down Neely’s heart almost immediately. But Neely continued to have a pulse even after he stopped voluntarily moving, according to a man who held down Neely’s arms and police who responded to the scene. The medical examiner said that suggests his heart continued to function even after his brain was deprived of oxygen.
Sickle cell trait, Harris said, is typically benign. She said the compression of the neck could have caused Neely’s cells to sickle — meaning that they became misshapen and couldn’t properly carry blood. But she said that would have been a consequence of the chokehold.
During cross examination, defense attorney Steven Raiser asked Harris whether an intense struggle could have caused Neely’s death, even if he wasn’t asphyxiated. He asked whether other factors could have weakened Neely’s heart, like his schizophrenia and frequent use of synthetic cannabinoids and cigarettes. The attorney also asked why Harris decided that Neely died from the chokehold before receiving all the test results.
The medical examiner said the cause of death became clear once she watched a video of the chokehold and its aftermath.
“After watching it, I had no further questions about why he was dead,” she said.
Harris testified that she presented her findings to other medical examiners, including the chief, and everyone agreed unanimously with her assessment.
“No toxicology report would have changed my opinion,” she said.
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