In May 2023, former Marine Daniel Penny choked Jordan Neely to death on New York City’s F Train. And, ahead of his October trial, Penny’s defense attorneys already plan on twisting the narrative.
They want a forensic psychiatrist to “opine regarding the extent of Neely’s K2 abuse” - to explain, along with unredacted psychiatric records, why Neely would have been “insanely threatening” to subway passengers. But defenses and prosecutions have spun this before.
Attorneys tried contorting George Floyd, Michael Brown, and Philando Castile’s killings into drug-related cautionary tales. Interpretations of a toxicology report blamed marijuana for Sandra Bland’s death. Media outlets grasped at straws with Trayvon Martin’s Twitter account and school suspensions. Prosecutors offered Breonna Taylor’s ex-boyfriend a plea deal to say she trafficked drugs.
Cops also weaponize mental illnesses and other disabilities when they kill and later tell the story, like with Sonya Massey. They blame victims for being armed – or invent weapons out of thin air.
Narratives that shift focus or blame Black victims for their deaths aren’t just attempts to justify their murders. They’re a second killing, seeking to mark victims undeserving of the humanization and empathy they receive once their cases reach public attention. But we can reject anti-Black smear campaigns when we see them, and instead evoke victims’ names and stories, refusing to render them disposable.