Giuliani says jury verdict in Penny's case is a black eye to Bragg and ruling New York elites

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani on Monday night claimed that a New York City jury sent a strong message to the city's ruling elite by finding Daniel Penny clear of any wrongdoing in the death of Jordan Neely.

Penny, a former Marine, was acquitted by the Manhattan jury earlier Monday, after he kneeled on Neely's neck on a subway last year, which prosecutors argued resulted in the man's death. The jury was deadlocked on a more serious charge last week, which resulted in the charge being dismissed, but they only debated the lesser charge briefly on Monday before finding Penny innocent. 

Giuliani said that the verdict was a "shocker" given how fast it was reached, but that it was "great day ... for justice." 

He also claimed the judge had wanted the jury to convict Penny, but that jurors, who ride the subways, understood Penny acted to save others.

"The jury of New Yorkers, and they ride the subways and you can be the most left wing wacko [but] you ride the subways, you're scared," Giuliani said on the "Just The News, No Noise" TV show. "And Penny, they know Penny did the right thing. This is a person to person, human reaction above the heads of the fools that have run the city for so long. The crazy, silly, criminal-loving liberals."

Giuliani also said that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg should have resigned or been removed from office the second he claimed he would not prosecute people "for beating up cops" or "resisting arrest."

"He's probably not prosecuted half the cases that come before him," Giuliani said. "He's responsible for any number of murders in New York, and beatings. There are probably seven to 10,000 criminals walking the streets of New York that would not [be] if I were the mayor or Mike Bloomberg and Ray Kelly."

The former mayor added that Neely, who has a history of mental illness and had been arrested himself in the past, should not have been on the street to begin with.

"The person who caused this is number one, the New York system, and then the people who didn't deal with his mental illness," Giuliani said. "Mr. Penny didn't have anything to do with this. He just tried to save people. [Neely's] father had years to try to save us from this guy, and didn't do a damn thing."

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.