Federal prosecutors in Luigi Mangione case won’t appeal ruling barring death penalty
Luigi Mangione, who’s accused of fatally shooting Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, in December 2024, appears in court for a hearing Feb. 21, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Steven Hirsch/The New York Post via the Associated Press)
Federal prosecutors on Friday stated that they will not appeal a judge’s ruling that removes the death penalty in the case against Luigi Mangione in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in late 2024.
In January, U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett of the Southern District of New York dismissed two charges against Mangione, including murder through use of a firearm, which is death penalty eligible, and a gun charge.
She left stalking charges in place that carry a maximum punishment of life in prison. Deputy U.S. Attorney Sean Buckley of the Southern District of New York wrote a letter stating that the government will not ask to reverse the judge’s opinion, according to coverage by Bloomberg Law.
In pursuit of the death penalty, the government would have to prove that Mangione killed Thompson during another “crime of violence,” and stalking does not fit in that definition, according to Garnett’s 39-page opinion. He faces state and federal murder charges.
“Regardless of its own views, a district court is duty bound to follow binding Supreme Court precedent,” Garnett wrote. “The law must be the court’s only concern.”
See also:
What can Luigi Mangione’s trial tell us about unbiased juries?
Hearings reveal details of Mangione’s arrest as murder case drags on
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