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Luigi Mangione, the man accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, faces two high-profile criminal prosecutions this year. He is set to stand trial in both state and federal court, where the charges differ.<\/p>\n
Thompson was shot and killed outside the New York Hilton Midtown hotel on the morning of Dec. 4, 2024, as he was on his way to an investors conference. Five days later, amid a frantic manhunt, Mangione was arrested at a McDonald\u2019s in Altoona, Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n
The business executive\u2019s killing, which was recorded by a closed-circuit television camera, shocked people nationwide. It also turned his accused assassin into a cause c\u00e9l\u00e8bre and an avatar for public fury over the private health insurance industry.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s what you need to know about the status of the two cases. Mangione, 27, pleaded not guilty<\/a> in both proceedings.<\/p>\n In the state case, Mangione faces nine felony charges, including second-degree murder and various counts related to criminal possession of a weapon.<\/p>\n \u201cThis type of premeditated, targeted gun violence cannot and will not be tolerated, and my office has been working day in and day out to bring the defendant to justice,\u201d Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said<\/a> in December 2024.<\/p>\n New York state prosecutors initially attempted to prosecute Mangione on two other charges \u2014 first-degree murder \u201cin furtherance of terrorism\u201d and second-degree murder \u201cas an act of terrorism\u201d \u2014 but a judge tossed those counts last year<\/a>, ruling they were \u201clegally insufficient.\u201d<\/p>\n The state charges carry the possibility of life in prison. (New York does not have the death penalty after its capital punishment statute was declared unconstitutional in 2004.)<\/p>\n In the federal case, Mangione faces two counts of stalking, which carry a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.<\/p>\n The federal government originally charged<\/a> Mangione with two other offenses \u2014 murder through use of a firearm, which carried a potential death sentence, and a related firearms count \u2014 but a judge dismissed those charges in late January.<\/p>\n U.S. District Judge Margaret M. Garnett ruled that the murder charge can only be used in tandem with a \u201ccrime of violence.\u201d She found that Mangione\u2019s alleged stalking of Thompson did not meet that standard, effectively blocking prosecutors from seeking the death penalty<\/a>.<\/p>\n Karen Agnifilo, one of Mangione\u2019s lawyers, applauded that ruling and told reporters his defense team was \u201cvery relieved.\u201d<\/p>\n In both cases, prosecutors are expected to put particular emphasis on the evidence seized from Mangione\u2019s backpack<\/a> on Dec. 9, 2024, when he was arrested at a McDonald\u2019s<\/a> nearly 300 miles away from the block where Thompson was killed.<\/p>\n Authorities have said Mangione\u2019s backpack contained a handgun, a silencer, a magazine with bullets wrapped in underwear, fake identification cards, a red notebook and other writings detailing his grievances against the private health care system in the United States.<\/p>\n Mangione\u2019s lawyers tried to block that evidence from the federal trial, arguing in part that the arresting officers carried out an illegal search. But the prosecution team rebutted that contention<\/a>, and Garnett ultimately concluded \u201cthe search was reasonable under the facts.\u201d<\/p>\n It remains to be seen whether the items found in Mangione\u2019s backpack will be admissible in the state trial. That\u2019s the subject of a pretrial hearing scheduled for May 18.<\/p>\n The prosecution teams in both cases may also highlight evidence found at the scene of Thompson\u2019s killing. Two spent shell casings had the words \u201cdeny\u201d and \u201cdepose\u201d written on them, and a bullet was found with \u201cdelay\u201d written on it, authorities have said.<\/p>\n Mangione has been detained at the federal Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn<\/a> since December 2024. The same facility also houses deposed Venezuelan President Nicol\u00e1s Maduro and hip-hop artist Tekashi 6ix9ine, whose real name is Daniel Hernandez.<\/p>\n In a bizarre episode in late January<\/a>, a Minnesota man was charged with impersonating an FBI agent after he showed up at the prison claiming to have a court order to release an inmate, identified by a law enforcement source as Mangione.<\/p>\n The state case is scheduled to start on June 8<\/a>. In the federal case, jury selection is tentatively set to begin Sept. 8.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nWhat are the charges and potential sentences?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
What evidence can be used?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Where is Mangione being held?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
When do the trials begin?<\/strong><\/h2>\n