Identity of NYC tube vigilante revealed

Daniel Penny, a former US Marine from Long Island, was filmed choking homeless man Jordan Neely to death on a New York City subway car on Monday. He was only identified by Twitter detectives four days after the incident, fueling public outrage as city authorities are accused of protecting the killer. Neely, a Michael Jackson impersonator, had been throwing garbage and yelling at passengers on the train before Penny and several others restrained him, declaring he was hungry, desperate, and “ready to die.” Police say five bystanders called 911 about him, claiming he was threatening or even attacking passengers. The slain performer had been arrested 42 times in the last 10 years, most recently for punching a 67-year-old woman in the face in an East Village subway station, and his family lamented that he was unable to get the psychiatric help he needed. The racial dynamic of the killing - Penny is white and Neely is black - has caused accusations of "lynching" from Black Lives Matter activists.

Al Sharpton warned against going back to a place where vigilantism is tolerable. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez branded Penny a "murderer" and his actions a "public execution," and protests have erupted. District Attorney Alvin Bragg has not yet decided whether to send the case to a grand jury and file charges against Penny.