Luigi Mangione, the 27-year-old accused of killing UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson, will not be eligible for the death penalty if found guilty, following a ruling by a federal court.
US District Judge Margaret Garnett struck out federal firearms charges that could have exposed Mangione to capital punishment. However, he will still stand trial on federal stalking charges, which carry a possible sentence of life imprisonment.
Mangione was arrested several days after prosecutors say he shot Thompson as the executive entered a New York City hotel on 4 December 2024. He has entered not guilty pleas to all charges at both federal and state levels.
Reacting to the ruling, Mangione’s lawyer, Karen Agnifilo, expressed gratitude to the court. “This incredible decision,” she said, adding, “We’re all very relieved.”
She continued, “We’re prepared, and have been prepared, to fight this case, and we look forward to fighting this case.”
In her decision, Judge Garnett, a Biden appointee, ruled that two of the four federal counts failed to “meet the federal statutory definition of a ‘crime of violence’ as matter of law”.
She emphasized that the ruling was “solely to foreclose the death penalty as an available punishment to be considered by the jury”.
The decision represents a setback for the justice department, which has described Thompson’s killing as a “premeditated, cold-blooded assassination”. Prosecutors have been given 30 days to appeal the judge’s ruling barring the death penalty.
Still, the court sided with prosecutors on the admissibility of evidence recovered from Mangione’s backpack at the time of his arrest at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania.
The bag reportedly contained a firearm, forged identification documents and a notebook allegedly outlining Mangione’s grievances against the US healthcare system.
Defence lawyers had argued the items should be excluded, claiming they were seized without a warrant.
Mangione, an Ivy League graduate from a wealthy Maryland family, is also facing nine charges in a separate case brought by New York state prosecutors, including second-degree murder.
Thompson, a 50-year-old father of two, was shot from behind by a masked attacker as he made his way to a Manhattan hotel for an annual investor conference.
Investigators say shell casings found at the scene bore the words “deny”, “defend” and “depose” — phrases believed to reference the so-called “three Ds of insurance”, tactics used by insurers to reject patient claims.
Jury selection in the federal case is scheduled to begin on 8 September, with opening statements set for 13 October. Meanwhile, New York state prosecutors are pushing to begin their trial as early as July.
In a related development, authorities in Minnesota arrested a man on Wednesday accused of posing as an FBI agent in an alleged attempt to secure Mangione’s release from a Brooklyn jail.
Prosecutors say the suspect, identified as Mark Anderson, was carrying a barbecue fork and a pizza cutter. He is currently being held at the same detention facility as Mangione.
