Luigi Mangione pleads not guilty to federal murder and stalking charges

Luigi Mangione on Friday pleaded not guilty to federal stalking and murder charges in connection with the Dec. 4 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

The 26-year-old appeared in Manhattan federal court, sporting noticeably shorter hair and wearing mustard-colored prison garb over a thermal white shirt. He was chatting with his attorneys before Judge Margaret Garnett asked him to stand and make his plea.

Mangione responded with only one-word answers before entering his not guilty plea.

If convicted, he could be sentenced to death. Attorneys for Mangione did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

During the hearing, defense attorney Karen Agnifilo alerted the judge that someone had inadvertently listened to a call between her and Mangione.

"We were just informed by state court prosecutors that they were eavesdropping on his attorney calls," Agnifilo said. "They said it was inadvertent that they listened to a call between Mangione and me. I am the lead attorney."

The judge grilled federal prosecutors about the allegation, and the team stated that Agnifilo's comments were the first time they had heard about the calls.

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The judge added that she expects an update from federal prosecutors next month to ensure Mangione is given appropriate access to a secure line.

"I remind all counsel, criminal rule 23.1, about public commentary that could impede Mangione’s right to a fair trial," Garnett said in the courtroom. "I'm specifically directing the government to convey my directive to Mr. Clayton and request that he convey the same to Attorney General Bondi and her associates at main justice."

The next hearing date in Mangione's federal case is scheduled for Dec. 5, at which a trial date will be determined. Defense attorneys have asked for Mangione's federal case to go to trial first due to it carrying the possibility of a death sentence.

Last week, a federal grand jury indicted Mangione on four charges, including two counts of stalking, one count of murder through use of a firearm and a firearms offense for an allegation that he used a silencer.

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Mangione is accused of shooting Thompson from behind on a Manhattan sidewalk outside a hotel where the CEO was staying for an investors' conference. Two spent shell casings found at the scene had the words "deny," "depose" and "delay" written on them. After a five-day manhunt, Mangione was arrested at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania.

Prosecutors filed a notice on Thursday seeking the death penalty for Mangione, weeks after Attorney General Pam Bondi directed them to do so. The prosecutors cited what they believe is the intentional nature of Thompson's killing, Mangione's alleged desire "to provoke broad-based resistance" to the healthcare industry, as well as "future dangerousness" that he presents to it.

"Mangione presents a future danger because he expressed intent to target an entire industry, and rally political and social opposition to that industry, by engaging in an act of lethal violence," the notice read. "And he took steps to evade law enforcement, flee New York City immediately after the murder, and cross state lines while armed with a privately manufactured firearm and silencer."

Mangione is also facing state charges in New York and Pennsylvania, including first-degree murder in furtherance of terrorism, two counts of second-degree murder, weapons charges, and a count of using a forged instrument.

He pleaded not guilty to the murder and terrorism charges in New York.

The courtroom was packed for Friday’s hearing, and former U.S. Army analyst and whistleblower Chelsea Manning was among those who attended.

After the approximately 30-minute hearing concluded, Manning shared her thoughts on Mangione’s cases, describing it as "unprecedented" that two cases are running simultaneously: the federal case and the state case.

"They have a capital case that’s being speed run ... that is, we don’t do that, we don’t do that here," Manning said outside court. "We don’t do that in America. We don’t do that in our justice system. We don’t speed run justice."

When asked if she was a supporter of Mangione, she said she is "a supporter of the justice system being done in a fair manner."