Judge dismisses terrorism charges against Luigi Mangione
A New York State judge rejected two accusations of terrorism against Luigi Mangione, the alleged killer of the CEO of Unitedhealthcare, Brian Thompson.
However, judge Gregory Carro in a hearing on Tuesday morning held that an accusation of second degree murder against Mangione could stand.
He said prosecutors had not established that there was enough evidence to justify the accusations of murder linked to terrorism they had asked for Mangione.
Mangione is accused of having shot Thompson in a street in Manhattan animated in December of last year.
In a written decision, Carro declared that allegations against Mangione did not respond to the definition of terrorism under the law of the State.
Although the prosecutors argued that the writings left by Mangione demonstrated a reason for terrorism, the judge said that they had not shown that the suspect intended to put political pressure on the government or to terrorize the general population – the main provisions of the New York terrorism law, adopted following the attacks of September 11, 2001.
“No evidence presented that the defendant made government requests or asked for a particular change in government policy, even less than he did by intimidation or coercion,” wrote Carro in his decision.
The accusation of first -degree murder which was rejected would have led to a maximum prison sentence to perpetuity without the possibility of parole.
If he is found guilty of the accusation of murder in the remaining second degree, Mangione is in minimal conviction of 15 to 25 years in prison. He was also accused of counterfeit weapons and crimes.
And in addition to the criminal procedures of New York State, Mangione also faces accusations of federal murder, which could lead to the death penalty.
Carro rejected the request of the defense team to delay the state trial until the end of the mangione federal trial.
During the hearing on Tuesday, the judge judged that the first instance hearings would begin on December 1.
Mangione pleaded not guilty to the charges against him.
Thompson, father of two, was director general of the insurance division of Unitedhealth Group – the biggest health insurer in the United States.
He was in New York for a meeting when he was killed three times in a street in Manhattan animated around 6:45 am on December 4.
After a five -day man hunt, Mangione was arrested at around 300 miles (480 km), in a McDonald’s restaurant in Altoona, Pennsylvania.
Police said that he had left a note criticizing companies benefiting from the American health system, accusing them of “corruption and greed”.
Outside the Manhattan Supreme Court on Tuesday, a handful of mangione supporters gathered, some of them holding sides with slogans such as “Free Luigi” and “Innocent until guilt is proven”.
