Judge to weigh double jeopardy bid in Mangione state case on Dec. 10

Lawyers for Luigi Mangione are asking a New York judge to throw out the state murder case against him, arguing his federal guilty plea already covers the same shooting. The defense renewed that push Friday before state Supreme Court Justice Gregory Carro. A ruling on the dismissal motion is expected Dec. 10.

Mangione, who admitted killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, pleaded guilty in Manhattan federal court in August to interstate stalking charges. His state trial on second-degree murder and weapons possession, which had been scheduled for Sept. 18, was postponed indefinitely while the court weighs whether double jeopardy bars a second prosecution. He faces up to 25 years to life if the state case proceeds, and a potential life sentence when he returns to federal court Dec. 18.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office says the state charges stand apart from the federal ones. Prosecutors point to a ruling by U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett that the stalking at issue could not be considered violent under the law, a decision that led to the dismissal of two counts that would have exposed Mangione to the death penalty. The Justice Department had previously announced it would seek capital punishment before that ruling. Lead prosecutor Joel Seidemann cited the federal litigation in a filing to show the state counts are different.

Mangione's attorneys say the two cases address the same conduct. They told the court the federal counts involve possession of the same firearm, at the same time and place, as the state counts. "There is and was no other gun," attorneys Karen Friedman Agnifilo, Marc Agnifilo and Jacob Kaplan wrote in a letter to the court. They added that there is no basis for finding a difference in the harms addressed by each case.

New York double jeopardy law requires distinct "evils" between two cases before a second prosecution can proceed, according to legal experts. Mangione's lawyers argue no such difference exists here. Bragg's office has pointed to a separate exception that could allow the case to move forward if Judge Carro finds unique elements in the state charges.

Mangione used a 3D-printed firearm to shoot Thompson outside the midtown Hilton early on Dec. 4, 2024, as Thompson walked from his hotel to an investor conference. He was arrested five days later in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after patrons at a McDonald's recognized him from photos the NYPD circulated. In federal court, Mangione said he acted out of a personal grievance with the health insurance industry. Investigators said he was never a UnitedHealthcare policyholder.