What Is the Daniel Penny Effect? Critics Blame It for Bystanders Watching As Woman Was Burned Alive On NYC Subway

Daniel Penny Effect: New Yorkers expressed outrage on Monday after a horrifying incident in which an undocumented Guatemalan immigrant allegedly set a sleeping woman on fire aboard a Brooklyn subway train, resulting in her death. Shockingly, bystanders, including an NYPD officer, failed to intervene during the Sunday morning attack.

Disturbing Footage Sparks Outrage

Video footage from the scene reveals at least three bystanders, one of whom was seen filming the incident on a phone, standing outside the subway car as the flames consumed the unidentified victim.

“Nobody came to her aid,” said Curtis Sliwa, founder of the Guardian Angels and a community activist. He criticized the inaction, suggesting fear of legal consequences was a likely factor.

“There’s no doubt that people don’t want to get involved. It’s the Daniel Penny factor. It’s frozen people. They’re saying to themselves: ‘I don’t want to get jammed up like Penny,’” Sliwa explained.

Sliwa added, “People should have been running over to the woman on fire. They did nothing. They said nothing.”

Legal Fallout and the Daniel Penny Effect

The reference to Daniel Penny stems from the ex-Marine’s legal battle after fatally choking Jordan Neely, a homeless man who had aggressively confronted passengers on a Manhattan subway car last year. Penny faced murder charges but was acquitted of criminally negligent homicide earlier this month.

Some observers believe the highly publicized case has deterred individuals from intervening in subway emergencies.

“People are reticent about getting in the middle of criminal activity,” said Gerard Kassar, State Conservative Party Chairman and a Brooklyn resident. “There are a lot of New York City residents who think twice about acting because they don’t think they have the support of our Democratic elected officials. They are wary of revolving-door justice.”

Kassar lamented the preventable nature of the tragedy, saying, “This murder never should have happened in the first place.”

Suspect Arrested Following Gruesome Incident

The accused, identified as 33-year-old Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, was apprehended later on Sunday after leaving the scene. Video footage reportedly shows Zapeta-Calil calmly sitting on a bench as the woman burned. Authorities caught up with him at the 34th Street-Herald Square station in Manhattan.

Federal immigration officials confirmed Zapeta-Calil’s undocumented status. He now faces charges related to the fatal attack.

Also Read: NYC Subway Death: Man Charged With Murder For Setting Woman On Fire With Shirt