Luigi Mangione, the accused killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, was eligible for a health sentence because he was charged with four federal charges, according to complaints unsealed Thursday after his extradition to New York from Pennsylvania. New York abolished the death penalty in 2004 and the last execution in the state was in 1963, but the federal charge of “homicide by firearm” could carry the possibility of a death penalty, the Associated Press reported. In fact, Luigi Mangione could be the first in decades to face the death penalty in New York.
New federal charges against Luigi Mangione
When Mangione arrived in New York, where he killed Brian Thompson, he faced new federal murder and stalking charges. Mangione was brought to New York because he waived extradition in Pennsylvania, meaning he did not fight his extradition from Pennsylvania to New York. He was not charged with murder in Pennsylvania.
As part of the federal complaint, Mangione is charged with murder by use of a firearm, two counts of stalking and one count of possession of a firearm, among other counts, court documents show.
Does New York have the death penalty?
There is no death penalty in New York, but since he has been charged with federal murder, he could face the death penalty. The federal indictment against Mangione was a surprise and took his lawyers by surprise. Mangione is expected to appear in federal court in Manhattan sometime after 2:30 p.m. today.
Had Luigi Mangione not been hit with a federal indictment, he could have faced the maximum penalty for a first- and second-degree murder charge: 25 years in prison.
Why Luigi Mangione waived extradition
Luigi Mangione's Pennsylvania lawyer, Thomas Docky, said they decided not to challenge the extradition because it would have only delayed the inevitable. His lawyers decided to focus on the main charges he faced in New York rather than get involved in the trial in Pennsylvania, but the federal charges came as a surprise, even though they knew federal prosecutors were considering additional charges.
“This decision allows us to focus on defending him against these serious allegations rather than becoming bogged down in procedural disputes,” Dicky previously said.
Mangione is defended in New York by Karen Friedman Agnifilo.
