Luigi Mangione returns to court Friday as judge weighs defense motions to dismiss charges

Lawyers for accused assassin Luigi Mangione person continued to bolster their ineligible arguments to person the astir superior charges against him thrown retired — on with the imaginable decease penalty.

The 27-year-old returns to tribunal Friday greeting for a presumption conference, wherever the justice could awesome however she intends to regularisation connected motions to propulsion retired 2 of the 4 national charges helium faces and whether prosecutors tin usage damning grounds seized from his backpack aft his apprehension astatine a Pennsylvania McDonald's.

Although oral arguments already took place, the defence has aggressively argued successful consequent filings that prosecutors person failed to allege an underlying "crime of violence" indispensable for the apical complaint of execution done usage of a firearm. That is the lone complaint Mangione faces that carries the imaginable decease penalty.

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Luigi Mangione, charged with the execution of Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, appears successful State Supreme Court successful Manhattan alongside lawyer Karen Friedman Agnifilo during an grounds suppression proceeding successful his lawsuit connected Friday, December 12, 2025. (William Farrington for New York Post via Pool)

Prosecutors countered successful an absorption filing that the defence is relying connected irrelevant precedent.

"Here, by contrast, nary tribunal has interpreted the 'conduct that places [the victim] successful tenable fearfulness of decease oregon superior bodily injury' element," national prosecutors wrote.

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UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson pictured successful an undated representation provided by UnitedHealth. The enforcement was changeable from down and killed connected his mode to an capitalist league successful New York City successful what prosecutors person described arsenic a politically motivated assassination. (AP Photo/UnitedHealth Group via AP)

In bid to complaint Mangione with the national complaint of execution done usage of a firearm, prosecutors request an underlying transgression of violence. They person alleged that transgression to beryllium stalking. However, according to ineligible analysts, if stalking tin beryllium done without violence, adjacent if it wasn't successful the lawsuit alleged, the complaint could autumn apart.

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Mangione is accused of stalking UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson earlier shooting him successful the backmost extracurricular a New York City edifice connected the greeting of a planned concern conference.

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Luigi Mangione attends an evidentiary proceeding successful the execution lawsuit of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, astatine the Manhattan Supreme Court successful New York, U.S., December 18, 2025.  (Shannon Stapleton/Pool via Reuters)

"It’s similar a bid of dominos — the lone mode that the national authorities tin get to a decease punishment complaint successful their lawsuit is if the execution was committed during the people of a convulsive felony," Joshua Ritter, a Los Angeles transgression defence attorney, antecedently told Fox News Digital. "And the crushed that they request that is due to the fact that they request what’s called a national hook to get them national jurisdiction."

Thompson, a 50-year-old begetter of 2 from Minnesota, had travel to the Big Apple to conscionable with Wall Street investors.

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Suspect Luigi Mangione is taken into the Blair County Courthouse connected Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024, successful Hollidaysburg, Pa.  (Janet Klingbeil via AP)

Surveillance cameras recorded the slaying. Video shows Thompson walking down the sidewalk extracurricular the edifice erstwhile a antheral approaches from down and opens fire.

Thompson suffered aggregate gunshot wounds and collapsed to the ground. The gunman fled and was aboriginal spotted making his mode uptown connected a bicycle. There was astatine slightest 1 eyewitness, who appeared to beryllium unharmed.

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Police arrested Mangione 5 days aboriginal astatine a McDonald's successful Altoona, Pennsylvania, wherever customers and unit said they recognized him from a wanted poster released successful transportation with Thompson's murder.

Luigi Mangione is confronted by Altoona, Pennsylvania constabulary successful a McDonald’s soon earlier his apprehension for allegedly murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. (Altoona Police Department)

Mangione's defence has a abstracted question pending that would person grounds taken from his backpack during his apprehension thrown out.

Police said they recovered the suspected execution limb and handwritten notes that were captious of the wellness security manufacture and whitethorn bespeak Mangione's alleged readying and a motive.

Judge Margaret Garnett has not yet ruled connected either question and is expected to code the adjacent steps successful the lawsuit astatine Friday's hearing.

Jury enactment is scheduled for Sept. 8, with a proceedings to travel successful either October oregon January, depending connected however she rules connected the apical charges.

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Separately, Manhattan prosecutors person requested a July 1 commencement day for Mangione's authorities trial, which his lawyers person objected to arsenic "unrealistic."

In a missive to New York Judge Gregory Carro Wednesday, Assistant Manhattan DA Joel Seidemann wrote that the authorities has an interest, protected by national law, successful taking Mangione to proceedings first.