Daniel Penny, the former Marine recently acquitted in the death of Jordan Neely, joined President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect J.D. Vance at the annual Army-Navy football game.
Penny attended Saturday’s game as Vance’s personal guest, watching from the president-elect’s suite at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland.
Other notable figures in attendance included Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth, Intelligence Director nominee Tulsi Gabbard, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
Trump was seen alongside Vance, waving to the crowd as chants of “USA! USA!” echoed through the stadium before saluting during the National Anthem. Penny stood nearby, sipping a drink.
“Daniel’s a good guy, and New York’s mob district attorney tried to ruin his life for having a backbone,” Vance wrote on X on Friday, referring to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. “I’m grateful he accepted my invitation and hope he’s able to have fun and appreciate how much his fellow citizens admire his courage.”
Penny was acquitted of criminally negligent homicide after a month-long trial stemming from his fatal May 2023 confrontation with Neely on an uptown F train. The jury reached its decision after prosecutors dropped a more serious manslaughter charge when the jury couldn’t reach a unanimous verdict.
Vance, along with many other conservatives, praised the jury’s decision and criticized Bragg for pursuing charges.
However, far-left politicians have denounced Neely’s death as an unnecessary act of vigilantism. State Senator Jabari Brisport (D-N.Y.) called Neely’s death a “lynching,” while Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) labeled it “murder.”
