Mangione lawyers ask judge to prevent US prosecutors from seeking death penalty
PHOTO CAPTION: Luigi Mangione on Friday arrives at State Supreme Court in New York City for a hearing on murder charges for killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson (Reuters)
By Jack Queen
(Reuters) -Luigi Mangione's lawyers on Friday asked a judge to prevent the U.S. government from seeking the death penalty in a case accusing him of shooting and killing the CEO of UnitedHealth Group's insurance division, in New York last year.
Mangione's lawyers said in a filing in New York federal court that U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi's April 1 announcement that prosecutors would seek the death penalty was "unapologetically political" and breached government protocols for death penalty decisions.
"The United States government intends to kill Mr. Mangione as a political stunt," his lawyers said.
A spokesman for the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's office, which brought the charges, declined to comment.
Mangione, 26, has pleaded not guilty to New York state charges of murder as an act of terrorism and weapons offenses. New York does not have the death penalty for state charges.
Mangione has not yet entered a plea in a parallel federal case where Bondi said prosecutors would seek the death penalty.
In an April 1 statement, Bondi said Thompson's murder was a "premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America."
"After careful consideration, I have directed federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty in this case as we carry out President Trump’s agenda to stop violent crime and Make America Safe Again," Bondi said.
In their Friday court filing, Mangione's lawyers said the government failed to follow protocols for death penalty decisions, which include a lengthy investigation and opportunities for defense lawyers to push back.
The lawyers also cited a television appearance where Bondi said she ordered prosecutors to seek the death penalty because the victim was a CEO.
"Counsel is aware of no provision in the death penalty statute or in the Department of Justice’s death penalty protocol that allows for consideration of the social, economic or professional status of an alleged homicide victim in determining whether to seek the death penalty," Mangione's lawyers said.
If Mangione is convicted in the federal case, the jury would determine in a separate phase of the trial whether to recommend the death penalty. Any such recommendation must be unanimous, and the judge would be required to impose it.
Brian Thompson, the deceased CEO of UnitedHealth Group's insurance division, was shot dead on December 4 outside a Midtown Manhattan hotel, where the company was gathering for an investor conference.
The brazen killing of Thompson and ensuing five-day manhunt captivated Americans.
While public officials condemned the killing, some Americans have cheered Mangione, saying he drew attention to steep U.S. healthcare costs and the power of health insurers to refuse payment for some treatments. He is currently being held in federal lockup in Brooklyn.
(Reporting by Luc Cohen, Ismail Shakil and Jack Queen; Editing by Doina Chiacu and Chizu Nomiyama)
