President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance are set to attend the Army-Navy football game in Landover, Maryland, on Saturday, joined by notable guests, including Marine veteran Daniel Penny, who was recently acquitted in a high-profile subway chokehold case in New York City.
Vance, who personally invited Penny to the game, announced on X (formerly Twitter), “Daniel’s a good guy, and New York’s mob district attorney tried to ruin his life for having a backbone. I’m grateful he accepted my invitation and hope he’s able to have fun and appreciate how much his fellow citizens admire his courage.”
Penny’s case drew national attention, sparking debates around race, mental health, public safety, and homelessness. The 26-year-old Marine veteran was charged after putting Jordan Neely, a 30-year-old man with a history of mental illness and homelessness, in a fatal chokehold on a subway train. Passengers described Neely as acting erratically, making threats to kill and expressing a willingness to die, though he reportedly did not physically harm anyone during the incident.
Penny was acquitted last month of criminally negligent homicide, with the jury deadlocking on a more serious manslaughter charge. The civil case filed by Neely’s father, Andre Zachery, remains pending.
Joining the event alongside Trump, Vance, and Penny will be Pete Hegseth, Trump’s pick for secretary of defense and a former Army National Guard officer, as well as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a Navy veteran. Sources say Hegseth is expected to meet with Trump during the event.
House Speaker Mike Johnson and members of Republican leadership will also attend the game to discuss the upcoming legislative agenda for the 119th Congress.
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