Judge dismisses federal murder and weapon counts in CEO killing

A federal judge in Manhattan dismissed the murder and related firearms counts against Luigi Mangione in the killing of UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson, foreclosing the possibility of the death penalty in the federal case while leaving two stalking counts intact.

U.S. District Judge Margaret M. Garnett concluded that the murder and weapons charges could stand only if the two stalking counts met the federal statutory definition of "crimes of violence." In a written opinion, reported as 39 pages, Garnett found the stalking counts as charged did not satisfy that definition under controlling Supreme Court and circuit precedent and therefore could not support the death-penalty-eligible federal murder and firearms counts. Garnett said her legal analysis may strike many as "tortured and strange" and acknowledged the "apparent absurdity" that the law, as interpreted by higher courts, could produce a result that is "contrary to our intuitions about the criminal law." She wrote she acted to "foreclose the death penalty as an available punishment to be considered by the jury" as it weighs whether to convict Mangione.

The ruling, issued Friday, leaves two federal stalking counts in place. Prosecutors have charged those counts separately and say they carry a potential maximum sentence of life imprisonment, with some filings and reports describing the exposure as life without parole. The federal order does not affect a separate New York state prosecution in which Mangione faces a nine-count indictment that includes second-degree murder and multiple weapons charges; those state charges also carry the possibility of life in prison and remain pending.

Federal prosecutors may continue to use certain evidence seized after Mangione's arrest, Garnett ruled. The judge permitted admission of items taken from a backpack at the time of arrest, including a 9 mm handgun and a notebook that authorities say contains an entry referencing an intention to "wack" a health insurance executive. Defense attorneys had argued the search was unlawful because it occurred before a warrant was obtained.

Court filings and press accounts describe Thompson, 50, as a father of two who became UnitedHealthcare CEO in 2021 and was fatally shot as he walked to an investor conference in Midtown Manhattan on Dec. 4, 2024. Accounts differ on precise weapon descriptions: some sources describe the gun used as a 3-D printed "ghost gun," while others describe a handgun equipped with a silencer. Authorities recovered a 9 mm pistol at Mangione's arrest, but public filings should be consulted for definitive forensic links.

Attorney General Pam Bondi had directed federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty in the case, describing Thompson's killing as a "premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America" and tying the decision to an agenda to address violent crime. Mangione, 27, has pleaded not guilty in both the federal and state cases. Outside the courthouse, supporters who have donated to his legal defense were reported to have cheered after brief proceedings; one of his lawyers hailed Garnett's ruling as an "incredible decision" and said, "We're all very relieved."

The federal dismissal underscores a persistent fault line in criminal law: statutory text and precedent can constrain prosecutors even in cases that appear plainly violent. The remaining federal and state proceedings will determine whether prosecutors can secure convictions on stalking and state murder counts and how courts will resolve outstanding evidentiary disputes and scheduling for trial.