What to know about Luigi Mangione’s court cases ahead of trials

Luigi Mangione, the man accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, faces two high-profile criminal charges this year. He is expected to be tried in state and federal court, where the charges differ.

Thompson was shot and killed outside the Hilton Midtown hotel in New York on the morning of December 4, 2024, while on his way to an investor conference. Five days later, in the midst of a frantic manhunt, Mangione was arrested at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania.

The murder of the business executive, which was recorded by a closed-circuit television camera, shocked people across the country. It also turned his accused killer into a cause celebre and an avatar of public fury against the private health insurance industry.

Here’s what you need to know about the status of both cases. Mangione, 27, has pleaded not guilty in both proceedings.

What are the charges and potential penalties?

In the state’s case, Mangione faces nine charges, including second-degree murder and various charges related to criminal possession of a weapon.

“This type of premeditated and targeted gun violence cannot and will not be tolerated, and my office has worked day in and day out to bring the defendant to justice,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in December 2024.

New York state prosecutors initially attempted to prosecute Mangione on two other counts — first-degree murder “in aid of terrorism” and second-degree murder “as an act of terrorism” — but a judge threw out those charges last year, ruling they were “legally insufficient.”

The state charges carry the possibility of life in prison. (New York has not had the death penalty since its capital punishment law was declared unconstitutional in 2004.)

In the federal case, Mangione faces two counts of stalking, which carry a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

The federal government initially charged Mangione with two other crimes — murder by use of a firearm, punishable by death, and a gun-related count — but a judge dismissed those charges in late January.

U.S. District Judge Margaret M. Garnett ruled that the murder charge could only be used in conjunction with a “crime of violence.” She found that Mangione’s alleged harassment of Thompson did not meet that standard, thus preventing prosecutors from seeking the death penalty.

Karen Agnifilo, one of Mangione’s lawyers, applauded the decision and told reporters her defense team was “very relieved.”

What evidence can be used?

In either case, prosecutors are expected to place particular emphasis on evidence seized from Mangione’s backpack on Dec. 9, 2024, when he was arrested at a McDonald’s nearly 300 miles from the block where Thompson was killed.

Authorities said Mangione’s backpack contained a handgun, a silencer, a magazine with bullets wrapped in underwear, fake ID cards, a red notebook and other writings detailing his grievances against the private health care system in the United States.

Mangione’s lawyers tried to block that evidence at the federal trial, arguing in part that the officers who arrested him conducted an illegal search. But the prosecution team refuted this claim and Garnett ultimately concluded that “the search was reasonable on the facts.”

It remains to be seen whether the items found in Mangione’s backpack will be admissible in public trial. That’s the subject of a pretrial hearing scheduled for May 18.

The prosecution teams in both cases may also highlight evidence found at the scene of Thompson’s murder. Two spent shell casings had the words “deny” and “drop,” and one bullet was found with “delay” written on it, authorities said.

Where is Mangione held?

Mangione has been held at the Metropolitan Federal Detention Center in Brooklyn since December 2024. The same facility also houses deposed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and hip-hop artist Tekashi 6ix9ine, whose real name is Daniel Hernandez.

In a bizarre episode in late January, a Minnesota man was accused of impersonating an FBI agent after showing up at the jail claiming to have a court order to release an inmate, identified by a law enforcement source as Mangione.

When do the trials start?

The state’s trial is scheduled to begin June 8. In the federal case, jury selection is tentatively scheduled to begin September 8.