According to an internal memo seen by New York, partners at Andreesen Horowitz, a blue-chip venture capital firm in Silicon Valley, have cited Daniel Penny, a Marine Corps veteran who was acquitted last year on criminal negligence murder charges. He defended the decision to hire him. The era.
According to the memo, Andreesen Horowitz is perhaps the largest investor in public safety and defense venture capital in the country, saying, “As a result, we have been working with active duty troops, veterans, police chiefs, sheriffs and many more hours. These relationships are important to our success.”
Penny said, “The military veteran experience could help us continue to develop these relationships, and many of our founders and partners of public safety and defense share similar feelings.” The memo said. Director of investor relations.
The company said it had hired Penny as an employee Tuesday morning. Investment partner David Urevich was introduced to Penny last year, and in another note the veteran acted “with courage in difficult situations.”
Ulevitch asked Penny to join the company's American dynamism investment team, focusing on the aerospace, defense and manufacturing sectors.
Ulevitch has been conducting “an investigation and interview” with Penny, adding that he believed he had acted “in honored and appropriately given to him” on the subway.
Shortly after the employment was made public, the company's partners began receiving messages from outsiders and exclusive partners who were familiar with the message they spoke about the terms of anonymity. .
Some asked why Penny was hired without investing experience, while others expressed concern that his highly politicized trial would bring excessive attention to the company.
A spokesman for Andreessen Horowitz did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The attorney who represented Penny during the trial declined to comment Wednesday.
Partners at the company, including co-founder Marc Andreessen, supported President Trump in last year's election. Others are drawn to right-leaning figures, including Penny, who was accepted by conservatives during the trial.
Penny, a former architectural student, was criminally guilty of manslaughter after a video in 2023 that he fatally suffocated another passenger, Jordan Neely online. He was charged with negligent murder.
Neely, 30, boarded a northbound train F at Second Avenue station and quickly began screaming at passengers, an eyewitness said. Mr. Penny approached him from behind and placed him in a chokehold and took him to the floor.
A four-minute video recorded by a bystander quickly spread online, showing a man struggling on the floor of a subway train. Neely has passed away after years of struggling with his mental health.
In December, the ju judge almost died on the most serious charge that Mr Penny faced, and the judge dismissed it on manslaughter charges. The ju judge then considered a criminally negligent murder and found Mr. Penny acquitted.
For some, the incident represented concerns about homelessness, mental illness and crime in New York City. Others saw Neely as someone in need in a city that could slip through the most vulnerable cracks.
Andreessen Horowitz's memo acknowledged strong opinions about Penny, but “I believe there is long-term value in working with Daniel to expand our network, and I want him to be part of the team. I'm excited about it,” he added.
