Mangione, who is now 28, could leave prison sometime between ages 52 and 58 if the judge adopts the sentencing range prosecutors previously outlined in court documents.
WASHINGTON — Luigi Mangione has admitted guilt to federal stalking charges tied to the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, shifting the decision over his prison term to the federal judge overseeing the case.
Courtroom accounts indicate Mangione entered the guilty plea without reaching a deal with federal prosecutors, so the admission was not made in exchange for a promised reduction in punishment.
Speaking to reporters outside the courthouse after the hearing, prosecutors said they intend to push for the harshest possible sentence in the case: life behind bars.
Jamie McDonald, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said the government’s position on sentencing is also aimed at those who have expressed support for Mangione’s conduct.
“There can be no celebrity in assassination,” McDonald said. “Violence is not a legitimate instrument to promote any political or social message.”
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Still, prosecutors had earlier pointed in a court filing to a more specific sentencing recommendation for Mangione’s offenses, a range that would amount to roughly 24 to 30 years in federal prison. If the judge follows that guidance, Mangione would likely serve decades before becoming eligible for release.
Mangione, now 28, would be released between the ages of 52 and 58. It is unclear if he is eligible for early release or parole.
Mangione’s formal sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 18 in Manhattan.
What did Mangione say in court?
Mangione told the judge ahead of his plea that he used a ruse to gather information about the event, contacting the health insurance company ahead of time under the guise of being an investor at a multibillion-dollar firm.
“On the morning of Dec. 4, 2024, I shot Mr. Thompson in Manhattan, and he died,” Mangione told the court as Thompson’s wife, Paulette, took several deep breaths and repeatedly wiped tears from her eyes. A supporter put an arm around the wife and held her tight.
Mangione entered the plea at a hastily scheduled hearing in Manhattan federal court, resolving one of two cases against him in connection with Thompson’s death.
After the guilty plea in the federal case, attorney Karen Friedman Agnifilo, who is representing Mangione, said his defense team filed a motion in state court to dismiss the state case. That trial is scheduled to begin Sept. 8.
Mangione told the court Friday that he pursued Thompson “after years of enduring severe pain from a broken back and navigating the obstacles of the health insurance system.”
What did Mangione plead guilty to?
Surveillance video of the killing showed a masked gunman shooting Thompson, 50, from behind. Police say “delay,” “deny” and “depose” were written on the ammunition, mimicking a phrase used to describe how insurers avoid paying claims. That detail — and revelations that Mangione’s private writings lambasted health insurers as greedy, according to authorities — made the case a fulcrum for debate about the industry and made Mangione a cause célèbre for some of its critics.
Mangione never was a UnitedHealthcare customer, according to police and the company. A University of Pennsylvania graduate from a wealthy Maryland family, he was arrested five days after the shooting, when he was spotted at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, which is approximately 230 miles west of Manhattan.
Thompson led one of the United States’ largest health insurers, but he wasn’t well known outside the industry. Trained as an accountant, he had worked at parent company UnitedHealth Group Inc. for 20 years and became CEO of its insurance arm, UnitedHealthcare, in 2021. He and his wife have two sons, who were in high school when their father was killed.
Under New York law, a state prosecution could potentially be barred if the federal case is resolved first.
The state’s double jeopardy protections kick in if a jury has been sworn in a prior prosecution, such as a federal case, or if that prosecution ends in a guilty plea. Mangione’s cases involve different charges arising from the same course of conduct.
In a letter in July, state prosecutors objected to the possibility of a guilty plea in the federal case wiping out the state case.
U.S. District Judge Margaret M. Garnett has delivered some setbacks to the defense, including ruling in January that prosecutors could use items collected from Mangione’s backpack during his arrest as evidence against him.
They included a 3D-printed pistol that investigators said matched the one used to kill Thompson and a notebook in which authorities say Mangione described his intent to kill an insurance executive.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
