Daniel Penny, the former U.S. Marine who was charged with manslaughter in a choke hold death while subduing homeless man Jordan Neely on the subway in New York City, is receiving widespread support for his heroic actions that day.
That support is primarily financial in nature, in the form of donations to his growing legal defense fund.
According to Breitbart, popular conservative rock star Kid Rock is one of Penny's biggest donors so far. Rock, whose real name is Robert Ritchie, donated a whopping $5,000 to Penny's defense fund, which has grown to nearly $2.5 million in donations from the general public.
‘Mr. Penny Is A Hero’: Kid Rock Donates Thousands To Marine Veteran Accused Of Killing Jordan Neelyhttps://t.co/fxIdYX2REx#DanielPenny #JordanNeely
— Larry Elder (@larryelder) May 17, 2023
Kid Rock added a message to his donation, writing, "Mr. Penny is a hero. Alvin Bragg is a POS. Kid Rock."
Penny's legal defense fund has also attracted a number of high-profile people dropping large chunks of money into to, including Vivek Ramaswamy, a formally declared 2024 Republican presidential candidate.
Ramaswamy gifted a staggering $10,000 out of his own pocket.
“You have an abandonment of the rule of law,” Ramaswamy told Fox News Digital. “Then someone who tries to assist and protect people, based on the current facts we have … is now being prosecuted. That represents a perversion of how the system is supposed to work.”
"Penny is the subway Good Samaritan, and we are lucky to have brave souls like him who are willing to do the right thing," political commentator Tim Pool wrote, donating an impressive $20,000 to the fund.
Vivek Ramaswamy, GOP candidate, gives $10K to Daniel Penny legal fund https://t.co/obcOQqVyyD via @nypost
— Bo Snerdley (@BoSnerdley) May 15, 2023
Breitbart noted:
As of Monday morning, more than 42,000 people had donated to the campaign on the Christian crowdfunding site and the donations kept rolling in, as Breitbart News reported.
According to the page, it was created by the law firm Raiser & Kenniff, P.C., and the monies are to cover legal fees “from any criminal charges filed and any future civil lawsuits that may arise, as well as expenses related to his defense.”
Penny's attorneys, Thomas Kenniff and Steven Raiser, launched the fundraiser early last week. It quickly drew viral social media attention before making the news circuit, resulting in a steady stream of donors.
The lawyers indicated that any leftover funds would be donated to a New York City-based mental health program.
Only time will tell what becomes of Penny, but it's clear that millions of Americans believe he's a true hero, and catching a really bad break from a radicalized progressive prosecutor.