Attorney General Pam Bondi is instructing prosecutors to pursue the death penalty for Luigi Mangione.
Bondi described Thompson’s murder as a “premeditated, cold-blooded assassination.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi is directing federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty for Luigi Mangione if he is found guilty of the December murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, as she announced on Tuesday.
One of the federal charges against Mangione, murder through the use of a firearm, can result in the death penalty if he is convicted.
“Mangione’s murder of Brian Thompson — an innocent man and father of two young children — was a premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America,” Bondi stated. “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.”
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Mangione is alleged to have shot Thompson outside a Hilton hotel in Midtown Manhattan as the CEO was on his way to an investors conference on December 4. He was apprehended in Altoona, Pennsylvania, five days after the murder.
The federal charges against Mangione were filed in December, during the Biden administration.
“As alleged, Mangione planned his attack for months and stalked his victim for days before murdering him — methodically planning when, where, and how to carry out his crime,” then-Attorney General Merrick Garland stated at the time.
Mangione has pleaded not guilty to the state charges.
He has not yet entered a plea regarding the federal charges. He is scheduled to return to federal court on April 18.
Public Perception and TrialThe case has sparked mixed reactions, with some viewing Mangione as a hero avenging those harmed by the health insurance industry, while others condemn his actions. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to state charges and hasn’t entered a plea to federal charges.