In the span of six days, subway vigilante Daniel Penny has gone from sweating a future jail cell to hanging out with the president-elect in a luxury suite.
The Marine vet received a hero’s welcome Saturday as he joined soon-to-be commander-in-chief Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance at the annual Army-Navy football game.
Penny, who was acquitted Monday by a Manhattan jury in the chokehold death of NYC subway rider Jordan Neely, was Vance’s personal guest to attend the fierce grudge match in the president-elect’s suite at Northwest Stadium in Landover, MD.
Others attending the game included Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth, Intelligence Director nominee Tulsi Gabbard, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and billionaire Elon Musk.
Before kickoff, Penny dressed in a navy blue suit and tie, was spotted in the luxury suite talking with Vance, the future veep’s wife, Usha, and Johnson.
Trump minutes later was spotted standing next to Vance, shaking his fist and waving to the crowd as it chanted “USA! USA!” and then saluting during the singing of the National Anthem.
Trump also took time to greet Penny as both he and Vance posed for several photos with the Marine veteran. Vance was spotted patting Penny on the back while both chatted with Trump, and earlier laughing while he and Penny greeted another guest.
“Daniel’s a good guy, and New York’s mob district attorney tried to ruin his life for having a backbone,” Vance wrote on X Friday, also referring to far-left Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
“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.”
Gabbard told The Post it was an honor to join Trump “surrounded by great Americans celebrating freedom and what it means to serve.”
“Standing alongside courageous Americans like Daniel Penny was special, as he embodies the courage of our nation’s warriors, both in and out of uniform,” he said. “This game is not just about football; it’s a heartfelt tribute to service and unity, reminding us of the sacrifices made for our freedoms.”
Vance invited Penny, a 26-year-old Long Islander, to the game at the 65,000-seat home of the Washington Commanders while texting Penny’s lead attorney, Thomas Kenniff, to congratulate them on the verdict.
“He’s very humbled and grateful to be invited,” Kenniff told The Post Saturday.
The verdict came days after a more serious manslaughter charge was dismissed by prosecutors after the 12 jurors — seven women and five men — deadlocked on that rap.
The lightning-rod case has sparked fierce nationwide debate and political divide about mental illness, crime, vigilantism and race.
Vance and many other conservative pols have publicly hailed the verdict while ripping Bragg for slapping Penny with criminal charges.
However, many far-left pols have ripped Neely’s death as an unnecessary action of vigilante violence, including state Sen. Jabari Brisport (D-Brooklyn) who claimed the 30-year-old homeless man was “lynched” and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez (D-N.Y), who claimed Neely was “murdered.”
Others, including Mayor Eric Adams, argued the case highlighted a broken system that failed Neely and others suffering from mental health issues or drug dependency. Adams has said he “respect[s]” the jury’s decision but has declined to say if he agrees with it.
Trump has not referred to the case publicly recently, but a source with knowledge of the situation said he was heavily invested in the case, continually asking for updates during the trial. Penny and Trump even talked one night while the jury was deliberating, the source added.
Throughout the trial, Bragg’s prosecutors relentlessly pounded the race card before jurors, routinely calling Perry “the white man” and imputing racist motives to his actions — even as witness after witness confirmed that nearly everyone in the subway car was terrified by the 30-year-old Neely’s behavior.
Neely – who was schizophrenic and had synthetic marijuana in his system — was acting erratically, screaming “I’m ready to die,” while throwing trash at passengers and saying he wanted to kill someone, witnesses testified.
Penny put him in a chokehold for several minutes while the train was moving, and officers responding to the scene said Neely had a faint pulse when they arrived, but died shortly after.
Neely had also been convicted previously of assaulting people at subway stations.
Penny got to see one of the Army-Navy series’ more highly anticipated matchups in decades.
Both teams re-emerged as nationally relevant college football programs this year and are heading to bowl games later this month.
Navy won Saturday’s contest 31-13 and now leads the series 63-55 with seven games ending in a tie. With the win, Navy boosted its record to 9-3, while Army, champions of the American Athletic Conference, fell to 11-2.
The series has been played annually since 1930, and it dates back to 1890.
