Luigi Mangione pleaded not guilty to the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City at his arraignment Friday in Manhattan federal court.
Federal prosecutors indicted Mangione last week on two counts of stalking, a firearm offense and murder through the use of a firearm, a charge eligible for the death penalty if he is convicted.
Pam Bondi, DOJ seeking death penalty against Mangione
Mangione’s arraignment came a day after the U.S. Department of Justice formally told the court it intends to seek the death penalty in the case.
Federal prosecutors say Mangione poses a future danger, alleging in the latest court filing that he intended to “target an entire industry and rally opposition to that industry by engaging in lethal violence.”
They also say he took steps to dodge law enforcement, flee New York City after the murder and cross state lines while armed with a privately manufactured gun and silencer.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi previously said prosecutors would seek the death penalty, marking the first time since President Trump vowed to resume federal executions when he took office in January.
Mangione’s attorneys have filed motions asking for the death penalty option to be removed, saying the government “intends to kill Mr. Mangione as a political stunt.”
Civil and criminal attorney Donte Mills explained the challenges in a death penalty case.
“You have an additional burden, you have to prove intent. Intent that he intended to rile up the community or make people act as he did, make people commit murders against people in the healthcare industry. You have to prove that he intended this to be more than the killing of one person, and it’s really hard to prove what was in someone’s mind,” Mills said.
UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson killed in NYC
The 26-year-old is accused of ambushing Thompson, a husband and father of two, outside a midtown hotel on Dec. 4, 2024. Investigators said Thompson was on his way to an investors conference when he was shot in the back on the sidewalk.
The manhunt for his killer led police through Central Park to a hostel on the Upper West Side and eventually to a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania.
Mangione has pleaded not guilty to state murder and terrorism charges in New York, as well as forgery and weapons charges in Pennsylvania.
