A Los Angeles civil rights attorney has condemned Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg for playing the "race card" in announcing charges against the Marine who put an allegedly violent homeless man in a chokehold.

Daniel Penny, 24, was charged with second-degree manslaughter on Thursday in connection with the death of 30-year-old Jordan Neely. He is facing up to 15 years in prison if convicted.

Daniel Penny, a 24-year-old Marine veteran, walked out of an NYPD precinct in Manhattan on his way to be arraigned after he surrendered to authorities Friday morning in the chokehold death of 30-year-old Jordan Neely. https://t.co/zwmJMjBZmj pic.twitter.com/36JwZpV0j5

— CBS News (@CBSNews) May 12, 2023

Penny, a Marine Corps veteran, was filmed earlier this month restraining Neely, a reportedly mentally-ill homeless man who was allegedly harassing and threatening other passengers.

The chokehold Penny used, however, proved to be fatal and Neely's death was ruled a homicide.

The incident was immediately taken up by the cause of left-wing protesters, who have likened Neely's death to that of George Floyd's.

White protesters scream at and prevent a black man from going to work because they're trying to protest the death of a black man (Jordan Neely).pic.twitter.com/BGmTKhXtfX

— Leftism (@LeftismForU) May 7, 2023

What was supposed to be a vigil for Jordan Neely devolved into chaos Monday.

The NYPD arrested 11 people and say they found a Molotov cocktail in the crowd.

Protestors ask why the marine veteran who put Neely in a chokehold isn’t arrested.https://t.co/dZR5twuYkj@CBSNewYork pic.twitter.com/KB6woyJzPI

— Ali Bauman (@AliBaumanTV) May 9, 2023

However, many have also come to Penny's defense, with a GiveSendGo fundraiser raising over $960,000 to pay for his legal fees.

Leo Terrell, a civil rights attorney, chimed in on Penny's case on Friday, arguing that the charges against him are racially and politically motivated.

Terrell appeared on Fox News’ "The Story with Martha MacCallum," where he condemned Alvin Bragg as a "far-left" DA who has offered the Marine to the crowds like a "sacrificial lamb."

"The big question, Martha, is why – why the Marine and not the other individuals who helped him?" Terrell asked, according to Fox. "I mean, why weren't they charged for anything? They weren't charged at all."

Bragg, he said, is using "the classic ‘we want to play the race card’ situation."

"You can't ignore the fact that this Marine is white. You can't ignore the fact that the victim is black," Terrell said.

He also noted that 27 other people have died in the subway but have not been given the same attention.

"This is the ugliest of the race card being played. And this Marine is being the sacrificial lamb. And I find it offensive," Terrell said, Fox reported.

He was then played a clip of Lennon Edwards, the lawyer for Neely's family, questioning how a person could be "assaulted for fifteen minutes straight and never receive any help."

"The MTA needs to answer for that," Edwards said.

Terrell then said in response: "Chicago, [Los Angeles], New York – there's a common thread. A black mayor running these cities. And yet there's a problem with getting these types of mental services to these individuals? No, they're being ignored … The minority community is being ignored by people who are running the city."

This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.