Daniel Penny speaks out after not guilty verdict

"He was just threatening to kill people," Penny said, according to an interview that was broadcast on Tuesday on Fox Nation. "He was threatening to go to jail forever, go to jail for the rest of his life, and now I'm on the ground with him. I'm on my back in a very vulnerable position…If I'd just let him go, now I'm on my back and he can just turn around and start doing what he said – to me…killing, hurting."

New York City Police (NYPD) questioned and released Penny nearly two weeks after restraining Neeley, who was threatening people on the subway as he had reportedly done many times before. Penney said he was just putting himself between a violent man and vulnerable passengers. Neely was also found to be high on drugs at the time. He had a known record of intimidating and attacking transit passengers.

Penny thought he had to act as Neely moved against the waiting passengers. He says today that he did what was necessary.

"I didn't want any attention or praise, and I still don't," he said. "The guilt I would've felt if someone did get hurt, if he did do what he was threatening to do, I would never be able to live with myself. And I'll take a million court appearances and people calling me names and people hating me just to keep one of those people from getting hurt, or killed."

Neely explained that he could not sit by and watch people have their lives threatened. "There's outbursts on the train all the time, unfortunately in New York City there's always people coming on and saying, talking crazy, and this was unlike anything that I've ever experienced, and it was very serious," he said. "I completely believed what he was saying."

Penny also criticized the man who prosecuted him, Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney who led the campaign against him. Penny said that Bragg is representing policies that "have clearly not worked."

"[Policies] that the people, the general population, are not in support of, yet their egos are too big just to admit that they're wrong," he said.

Neely was subject to an arrest warrant and had a long criminal record when he died. He suffered from schizophrenia and drug abuse. Prior to his death, he demonstrated violent behavior against other transit victims.

Mayor Eric Adams (D-NY) has said he “respects the process” after learning of the non-guilty verdict. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) called Penny “delusional” after he was found not guilty.