Lawyers for Luigi Mangione have petitioned a New York federal judge to dismiss several criminal charges against him, including the sole count that could potentially result in the death penalty. This plea comes in relation to the federal indictment surrounding the December assassination of Brian Thompson, the chief executive officer of UnitedHealthcare.
In documents submitted to the Manhattan federal court, Mangione's defense team argued that prosecutors should be barred from using his statements to law enforcement officials, as well as evidence obtained from his backpack, which contained a gun and ammunition. The attorneys contended that Mangione was not informed of his rights prior to police questioning and emphasized that law enforcement officials failed to secure a warrant before conducting a search of his backpack.
Luigi Mangione, aged 27, has entered a not guilty plea to both state and federal charges in connection with the fatal shooting of Brian Thompson on December 4. Thompson was shot as he arrived at a Manhattan hotel for his company’s annual investor conference. Following the shooting, the alleged perpetrator managed to escape the scene, cycling to Central Park before taking a taxi to a bus station that serves multiple nearby states.
Five days following the incident, a tip from a McDonald's located approximately 233 miles (375 kilometers) away in Altoona, Pennsylvania, led to Mangione's arrest. Since then, he has been held without bail. In a prior motion, filed last month, Mangione's lawyers aimed to have his federal charges dismissed. They argued for the removal of the death penalty based on statements made by U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, who described the assassination as a “premeditated, cold-blooded act that shocked America.”
Murder cases are typically tried in state courts; however, Mangione is being prosecuted under a federal statute concerning murders committed with firearms as part of other “crimes of violence.” This federal charge is the only one that carries the possibility of a death sentence since the death penalty is not utilized in New York state. The defense has asserted that this particular charge should be dismissed because prosecutors have not successfully identified the other crimes needed for a conviction, arguing that the alleged crime of stalking does not qualify as a crime of violence.
The circumstances surrounding the assassination have generated significant public interest, inciting a wave of online backlash against U.S. health insurers and raising concerns about corporate executive safety. In the aftermath of Thompson's murder, investigators discovered the words "delay," "deny," and "depose" inscribed in permanent marker on the ammunition found at the crime scene. These phrases appear to echo language used by critics of the insurance industry.
