'Absolute catastrophe': Ted Cruz goes after 'rogue' DA after Marine veteran’s acquittal
Daniel Penny walks at Manhattan Criminal Court as a jury continues deliberations in the trial of the former U.S. Marine sergeant facing charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide for fatally strangling Jordan Neely, a homeless man, on a New York City subway car in 2023, in New York City, U.S., December 6, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) used the acquittal of Daniel Penny on Monday to attack New York City District Attorney Alvin Bragg – and encouraged the marine veteran to pursue legal action against the prosecutor.

A jury returned a not guilty verdict earlier in the day, refusing to find Penny guilty of criminally negligent homicide in the chokehold death of Jordan Neely, a homeless Black man who Penny confronted on a New York subway for threatening passengers. The judge tossed out the more serious manslaughter charge Friday after jurors became deadlocked during deliberations.

Penny’s acquittal left many in the MAGA world celebrating — and set Cruz on a quest for vengeance.

ALSO READ: Agenda 47: Alarm sounded about Trump’s dystopian plans for his second term

“Alvin Bragg is an absolute catastrophe,” the conservative senator said in a statement Monday to the Daily Caller. “First, he indicted Donald Trump in a partisan case, and then he indicted Daniel Penny for saving the lives of other subway passengers from a deranged lunatic threatening to kill everyone. Penny should sue Bragg for malicious prosecution and hold this rogue Soros prosecutor accountable.”

He also posted a link on his social media to a Newsmax segment about the case and told his followers: “Alvin Bragg needs to go. He is a disgrace to the entire legal profession.”

And Cruz wasn’t done venting his frustrations on social media with the Penny case. He also took to X to share his views on the arrest on Monday of Luigi Mangione, the suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO.

“Leftism is a mental disease,” Cruz wrote. “The suspected murderer, an Ivy League graduate, 'subscribed to anti-capitalist and climate-change causes, according to law-enforcement.'And the murderer has been widely celebrated by leftists online. Tragic & sick.”