US judge rules out death penalty for Luigi Mangione over health CEO murder
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Luigi Mangione is accused of gunning down the CEO of UnitedHealthcare in New York in 2024.
PHOTO: REUTERS
- Judge dismissed murder and weapons charges against Luigi Mangione, accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO, due to incompatibility with stalking charges.
- Mangione, who pleaded not guilty, faces separate murder, weapons and forgery charges in Manhattan state court, with no trial date set.
- Despite public condemnation, Mangione has gained support from some who criticise healthcare costs, turning him into an unlikely figure.
AI generated
NEW YORK - A US judge on Jan 30 barred prosecutors from seeking the death penalty against Luigi Mangione, the man accused of gunning down a health insurance CEO
The judge dismissed two charges against Mangione that could carry the death penalty: murder and using a gun with a silencer.
The 27-year-old suspect is still charged with two counts of stalking in his federal case, and faces state-level murder charges.
The Jan 30 decision “is solely to foreclose the death penalty as an available punishment to be considered by the jury,” Judge Margaret Garnett wrote in a court filing.
Mangione faces life in prison without parole if convicted of the stalking charges.
The federal trial is to begin with jury selection on Sept 8.
The murder of UnitedHealthcare executive Brian Thompson, captured on surveillance video, shocked the United States and exposed public anger with the profit-driven private healthcare system.
Mangione was arrested five days after the killing at a McDonald’s restaurant in Altoona, Pennsylvania, some 370km from the crime scene, following a tip from a staff member.
In another significant ruling on Jan 30, Judge Garnett rejected Mangione’s lawyers’ efforts to suppress as evidence the police search of a backpack recovered at the time of his arrest.
Inside, officers found a handgun, a silencer, a magazine with bullets wrapped in underwear and a red notebook described as a “manifesto.”
The defence argued the search breached legal standards.
Mangione has pleaded not guilty to the state and federal charges. AFP
