Jordan Neely died as a result of a chokehold, a New York medical examiner has testified

The medical examiner who analyzed Jordan Neely’s body after Daniel Penny put him in a chokehold on an uptown F train last year was unable to identify any reasonable explanation for his death other than compression of his neck, she testified Friday during Penny’s criminal trial in Manhattan.

“It is your opinion that if Mr. Neely’s neck had not been compressed, he would not have died?” asked Assistant District Attorney Dafna Yoran.

“Yes,” replied Dr. Cynthia Harris in the chief investigator’s office.

Harris’ testimony on Friday is crucial for prosecutors, who must determine that Penny caused Neely’s death. She was the last witness in the prosecution’s case. Penny’s lawyers are expected to call their own witnesses starting Monday.

Penny has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter and negligent homicide in Neely’s death. On May 1, 2023, Penny put his arm around Neely’s neck, pulled him onto the floor of the train and held him for about six minutes, according to evidence at his trial. Neely was pronounced dead at a hospital shortly afterwards. Penny told the detectives that he had Neely in a stranglehold because he was shouting threats and “acting like a crazy person.” He also said he tried to restrain Neely until police arrived at the next station — and not kill him.

But Harris said the strangulation prevented oxygen from traveling to Neely’s brain, causing him to lose consciousness and eventually die. She said the oxygen was likely partially cut off by pressure on one side of Neely’s neck. The flow of oxygen also could have been blocked by the pressure under Neely’s chin, which could have pushed Neely’s tongue or other tissue into his throat, according to the medical examiner. She added that these types of blocks only require a small amount of force.

Over the course of about four hours on Thursday and Friday, Harris walked the judges through some of the body’s mechanisms, explaining in detail how humans breathe and what can happen when airflow is obstructed. She showed diagrams from textbooks and explained medical terms such as hemorrhage and capillaries. As jurors watched videos of the incident, they pointed out moments when Neely’s appearance suggested his body was starving for oxygen — such as his stomach heaving, his face turning purple and his veins bulging. The medical examiner also noticed pools of fluid forming on Neely’s pants, which she said was likely urine excreted during the death process.

As videos and photos of the chokehold appeared on screens in 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 noticed bleeding inside his throat and pools of blood in his eyes. Jurors also looked at photos of Neely’s neck, which showed red scratches. Harris said these were likely self-inflicted when Neely tried to remove Penny’s arm.

Penny’s 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 from a condition he called sickle cell disease.

Harris said she didn’t think any of these could have caused Neely’s death. She said synthetic cannabinoids – stimulants – would likely have killed Neely by causing a cardiac arrhythmia, cutting off blood flow to the heart. She said this would have shut down Neely’s heart almost immediately. But Neely continued to have a heartbeat even after he voluntarily stopped moving, according to a man who held Neely’s arms and police who arrived on the scene. The medical examiner said this suggests his heart continued to function even after his brain was deprived of oxygen.

Sickle cell disease, Harris said, is usually benign. She said the neck compression could have caused Neely’s cells to sickle, meaning they became misshapen and could not transport blood properly. But she said that would have been a result 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 had not been asphyxiated. He asked whether other factors could have weakened Neely’s heart, such as his schizophrenia and heavy use of synthetic cannabinoids and cigarettes. The attorney also asked why Harris decided Neely died from the chokehold before receiving all the test results.

The medical examiner said the cause of death became clear when she watched a video of the chokehold and its aftermath.

“After looking at 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 that everyone unanimously agreed with her assessment.

“No toxicology report would have changed my opinion,” she said.