OAN Roy Francis
2:10 PM – Thursday, May 4, 2023
New York City Mayor Eric Adams criticized Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for rushing to the conclusion that Jordan Neely was “murdered” when he was restrained by a Marine veteran via chokehold.
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On Monday afternoon, Neely was seen yelling and pacing back and forth on an F train in Manhattan. According to witnesses, Neely “was threatening riders and saying ‘I’m ready to go back to jail’ and ‘I’ll hurt anyone.’”
Neely, who had over 40 prior arrests four being for assault along with an active arrest warrant, was then restrained and put in a chokehold by a former United States Marine who was also riding the train, while two other passengers also tried to restrain his arms.
Neely lost consciousness and was transported to a hospital when EMTs were unable to revive him, he was declared dead shortly after. The New York City Medical Examiner’s Office then ruled the death a homicide that was caused by pressure to the neck.
The Marine veteran was taken into custody, but ultimately released without charges
New York City Mayor Eric Adams released a press statement addressing the situation.
“Any loss of life is tragic. There’s a lot we don’t know about what happened here, so I’m going to refrain from commenting further,” Adams said. “However, we do know that there were serious mental health issues in play here, which is why our administration has made record investments in providing care to those who need it and getting people off the streets and the subways, and out of dangerous situations. And I need all elected officials and advocacy groups to join s in prioritizing getting people the care they need and not just allowing them to languish.”
Around the same time on Wednesday, Ocasio-Cortez took to Twitter to attack the Mayor for his remarks and called the death of Neely a “murder.”
“Jordan Neely was murdered,” Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) wrote. “But [because] Jordan was houseless and crying for food in a time when the city is raising rents and stripping services to militarize itself while many in power demonize the poor, the murderer gets protected [with] passive headlines [and] no charges. It’s disgusting.”
Responding to the Mayor’s statement, she said that “it feels like a new low” to not “clearly condemn a public murder.”
The mayor later appeared on CNN and slammed the Democrat for rushing to conclusion saying her actions were “irresponsible.”
“I don’t think that’s very responsible at a time when we’re still investigating the situation. Let’s let the DA conduct his investigation with the law enforcement officials, to really interfere with that is not the right thing to do,” he replied. “And I’m going to be responsible and allow them to do their job and allow them to determine what exactly happened here.”
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office has promised to review the Medical Examiner’s report along with the footage from the incident, and eye witness reports.
“This is a solemn and serious matter that ended in the tragic loss of Jordan Neely’s life,” Bragg’s office said in a statement. “This investigation is being handled by senior, experienced prosecutors and we will provide an update when there is additional public information to share. The Manhattan D.A.’s Office encourages anyone who witnessed or has information about this incident to call 212-335-9040.”
Meanwhile, multiple protests broke out in New York City over the incident.
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