NEW YORK — Luigi Mangione pleaded not guilty Friday to federal charges tied to the fatal shooting of health insurance executive Brian Thompson, a day after prosecutors formally notified the court of their intention to seek the death penalty. The dramatic case—rooted in a brazen attack outside a midtown Manhattan hotel—has drawn national attention, sparking both condemnation and sympathy.
Standing in a packed federal courtroom in lower Manhattan, Mangione, 26, wore a tan, jail-issued T-shirt as he leaned into a microphone and delivered his plea. “Not guilty,” he said firmly in response to U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett’s question.
The plea comes in response to federal charges related to the Dec. 4 shooting of Thompson, the former CEO of UnitedHealthcare, a subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group. Mangione had already entered a not guilty plea to similar state charges in New York in earlier proceedings.
The case took a new turn earlier this month when U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the Justice Department’s decision to pursue capital punishment. That intent was officially registered Thursday evening in a court filing submitted by the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Mangione’s legal team swiftly pushed back, calling Bondi’s April 1 announcement “unapologetically political” and alleging that it violated long-standing federal protocols governing death penalty deliberations. Judge Garnett set a June 27 deadline for defense attorneys to submit a formal brief challenging the government’s pursuit of the death penalty. A tentative trial date will be scheduled next year, following Mangione’s next court appearance on Dec. 5.
During Friday’s hearing, Garnett issued a stern reminder about limitations on public commentary that could compromise Mangione’s right to a fair trial. She directed prosecutors to pass her warning to Manhattan U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton, with instructions that it be conveyed to Bondi as well.
The fatal shooting of Thompson unfolded outside a hotel where UnitedHealth executives had gathered for an investor event. Authorities say Mangione approached Thompson in public and opened fire before fleeing the scene, triggering a five-day manhunt that riveted the nation.
According to investigators, shell casings recovered at the scene bore the words “deny,” “delay,” and “depose”—a reference some have interpreted as a critique of health insurance industry practices, particularly the alleged denial of life-saving treatments or delays in care.
While public officials swiftly condemned the attack as an act of violence against the health care system, some Americans have expressed sympathy for Mangione, viewing his actions as a statement against the U.S. health insurance industry and the high cost of care. Prosecutors acknowledged this controversial response in their filing, stating that Mangione posed a continued threat to public safety. “He expressed an intent to target an entire industry, and rally political and social opposition to that industry, by engaging in an act of lethal violence,” they wrote.
If convicted in the federal trial, Mangione would face a separate sentencing phase in which the jury must unanimously recommend capital punishment for it to be imposed. The presiding judge would then be obligated to deliver that sentence.
For now, Mangione remains in federal custody at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, awaiting a legal process that is expected to draw further national scrutiny as it unfolds.
