Luigi Mangione set for court appearance: Details
Luigi Mangione, the man accused of fatally shooting former UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City, is scheduled to be in court for the first time since his December arraignment on state murder and terror charges.
NEW YORK CITY – Luigi Mangione, the man accused of fatally shooting former UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City, is scheduled to be in court on Friday afternoon for the first time since his December arraignment on state murder and terror charges.
What we know:
Mangione is set for a hearing in state court in Manhattan at 2:15 p.m. Prosecutors, as well as Mangione’s defense lawyers, are expected to provide updates on the status of the case. Judge Gregory Carro could also set deadlines for pretrial paperwork and possibly even a trial date.
The 26-year-old has pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of murder, including murder as an act of terrorism. He also faces federal charges that could carry the possibility of the death penalty.
Prosecutors have said the two cases will proceed on parallel tracks, with the state charges expected to go to trial first. The maximum sentence for the state charges is life in prison without parole. A Feb. 24 hearing in Pennsylvania on charges of possessing an unlicensed firearm, forgery and providing false identification to police was canceled.
‘Human ping-pong ball’
What they’re saying:
In a statement posted on a website for his legal defense, Mangione said: “I am overwhelmed by — and grateful for — everyone who has written me to share their stories and express their support. Powerfully, this support has transcended political, racial, and even class divisions.”
Meanwhile, defense lawyer Karen Friedman Agnifilo argued at his Dec. 23 arraignment that “warring jurisdictions” had turned Mangione into a “human ping-pong ball.”
Shocking video shows CEO gunned down in ‘targeted attack’
Video obtained by FOX 5 NY shows the moment Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, was shot and killed outside a Midtown Manhattan hotel.
She accused New York City Mayor Eric Adams and other government officials of tainting the jury pool by bringing Mangione back to Manhattan in a choreographed spectacle involving heavily armed officers escorting him up a pier from a heliport.
Friedman Agnifilo singled out Adams’ comment on a local TV station that he wanted to be there to look “him in the eye and say, ‘you carried out this terroristic act in my city.’”
The backstory:
Thompson was shot and killed back on the morning of Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, outside a Midtown Manhattan hotel in what the NYPD immediately said appeared to be a “brazen, targeted attack.”
Thompson was shot shortly before his UnitedHealthcare annual investors meeting. According to the Fortune 500 company’s website, Thompson had served as CEO since April 2021.
Mangione led authorities on a five-day manhunt before being arrested back on Dec. 9 at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania. According to police, he was carrying a gun that matched the one used in the shooting and a fake ID. He was also carrying a notebook expressing hostility toward the health insurance industry and especially wealthy executives, authorities said.
