Luigi Mangione defense makes stunning new bid to quash death penalty charge in UnitedHealth CEO slaying

Lawyers for Luigi Mangione on Saturday asked a federal judge in Manhattan to dismiss several federal charges, including the only count that could carry the death penalty.

In court filings reviewed by Fox News Digital, the defense argued that prosecutors have stretched federal statutes beyond their intent and engaged in overreach meant to sensationalize the killing. They also said the case should be tried in state court, not federal court.

His lawyers also said prosecutors should be prevented from using his statements to law enforcement officers at trial, arguing that Mangione wasn’t read his Miranda rights at a McDonald’s before being questioned. They argued that anything he said afterward shouldn’t be admissible.

Mangione is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on Dec. 4 outside a Manhattan hotel where the insurance company was hosting an investors conference. The execution-style slaying was caught on camera, with prosecutors alleging Mangione targeted Thompson due to financial and corporate disputes. 

Mangione fled the scene but was captured days later.

The assassination and its aftermath have captured the American imagination, setting off a cascade of resentment and online vitriol toward U.S. health insurers, while also rattling corporate executives concerned about security.

Mangione has already pleaded not guilty. His lawyers said that the government’s case relies heavily on circumstantial evidence and procedural overreach, not proof of intent or organized criminal activity.

Last month, lawyers for Mangione asked that his federal charges be dismissed and that the death penalty be taken off the table as a result of public comments by Attorney General Pam Bondi. In April, Bondi directed prosecutors in New York to seek the death penalty, calling the killing of Thompson a “premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America.”

Mangione is being represented by Karen Friedman Agnifilo, a high-profile New York defense attorney who is also a former Manhattan prosecutor and former CNN legal analyst.

Judge Miriam Goldberg of the Southern District of New York has set oral arguments for Dec. 5.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.