Federal prosecutors have dismissed the “meritless” claims made by the legal team of accused assassin Luigi Mangione. His defense argued that Attorney General Pam Bondi should step down from the case due to an alleged conflict of interest stemming from her previous connections with a lobbying firm. This comes just ahead of a significant hearing in Mangione’s federal trial.

The defense has previously alleged that Bondi harbors “prejudice” against Mangione. They argue that her past role as a partner at Ballard Partners, a lobbying firm linked to UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson—the purported target of Mangione—warrants her recusal from the proceedings.

Defense attorney Karen Friedman Agnifilo stated in a December court filing, “When Ms. Bondi transitioned from Ballard Partners to serve as Attorney General in 2025, the first person she chose for execution was the individual accused of murdering the CEO of her former client.”

Luigi Mangione is set to appear in Manhattan Supreme Court for a suppression hearing as the legal teams conclude their arguments on December 18, 2025. (Photo by Curtis Means for Daily Mail via Pool)

Nevertheless, prosecutors have labeled the defense’s assertions as “incomplete and misleading,” indicating their strong opposition to the claims.

Bondi no longer works there, they wrote, is not being paid by the firm or its clients and was not influenced by any “corporate interests” when the DOJ decided to seek the death penalty against Mangione if he is convicted.

A member of the NYPD Crime Scene Unit takes a picture of a shell casing found at the scene where UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot and killed in Midtown Manhattan in New York City on Dec. 4, 2024. (REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton)

Mangione is due in federal court Friday for a status conference expected to touch on a range of other issues, too.

Although his lawyers have dropped their motion to suppress statements he made to police before and after his arrest at a Pennsylvania McDonald’s, the defense is still hoping to suppress damning evidence recovered from Mangione’s backpack without a search warrant.

Federal prosecutors have countered that the suspected murder weapon and allegedly incriminating journals inside would have inevitably been discovered later — even if Altoona police hadn’t searched it at the scene.

UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson is pictured in an undated portrait provided by UnitedHealth. The executive was shot from behind and killed on his way to an investor conference in New York City in what prosecutors have described as a politically motivated assassination. (AP Photo/UnitedHealth Group via AP)

The defense has asked the judge to allow a future evidentiary hearing on the dispute, which the DOJ maintains is unneeded.

Legal experts have said police do not typically need one when they search a bag as part of the arrest process.

Other pending defense motions include attempts to drop two of the four federal charges against Mangione, including the most serious, murder through use of a firearm.

Earlier this week, federal public defender Paresh Patel joined Mangione’s legal team as a special counsel for the Friday hearing. Patel is a Maryland-based appellate attorney.

Luigi Mangione pictured in a Pennsylvania booking photo. (Pennsylvania Department of Corrections)

Surveillance video shows a man approach the 50-year-old Thompson from behind and gun him down outside a Manhattan hotel that was supposed to host a shareholder conference later that morning.

The Minnesota resident was a married father of two.