Luigi Mangione argues double jeopardy in bid to drop murder case, suppress evidence
Share this @internewscast.com

The defense team for the man charged with the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson submitted a motion to the New York Supreme Court on Thursday. They seek to suppress evidence in the prosecution’s case and request a complete dismissal of the charges.

Luigi Mangione’s lawyer, Karen Friedman Angifilo, stated in the filing that statements Mangione made to the Altoona, Pennsylvania police prior to his December 9 arrest should not be admitted at trial.

She argues that two police officers, who found the suspect inside a McDonald’s, “effectively had Mr. Mangione in custody” by blocking the restaurant’s exit during interrogation, without arresting him and informing him of his Miranda rights beforehand.

Friedman Angifilo argues that such questioning violated her client’s Fifth Amendment rights, and thus, his statements made to those officers should be excluded from the trial. 

Luigi Mangione is escorted by NYPD into a van after being extradited from Pennsylvania for the murder of United Healthcare CEO, Brian Thompson.

Luigi Mangione is escorted from an NYPD helicopter in New York City on Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024. Mangione is accused of murdering United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News Digital)

Police also found a small item “enclosed in cardboard and wrapped in tape.” Inside was a computer chip which was also taken as evidence.

Further, the motion seeks to ban the state “from eliciting lay non-eyewitness identification testimony at trial.” The state seeks plans to call NYPD Detective Oscar Diaz and Altoona police officers Joseph Detwiler and Tyler Frye to identify Mangione through surveillance footage based on their “familiarity with the defendant.”

“Here, the proposed witnesses are not eyewitnesses to the crime,” according to the motion. “Moreover, the witnesses had no interactions with Mr. Mangione prior to the video surveillance to make them ‘sufficiently familiar’ with Mr. Mangione.”

The defense also asked the court to dismiss the terrorism charges against Mangione, alleging that the grand jury that indicted him “failed to establish the required element that Mr. Mangione intended to intimidate or coerce a civilian population, influence the policies of a unit of government by intimidation or coercion or affect the conduct of a unit of government by murder, assassination or kidnapping.”

Luigi Mangione appears in court

Luigi Mangione appears in Manhattan Criminal Court for a status hearing in New York City on Friday, Feb. 21, 2025. Mangione is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside of a Manhattan hotel last year. (Curtis Means/Pool)

Finally, Friedman Angifilo asked the state of New York to drop the entire case against her client, claiming that trying him at the state and federal levels concurrently constitutes double jeopardy and thus a violation of Mangione’s Fifth Amendment rights. 

“This Court is all that stands between justice and Mr. Mangione being forced to stand trial against illegally obtained evidence, terrorism-related charges that have no application to the alleged shooting of one man and concurrent prosecutions that violate the Double Jeopardy Clause and his constitutional rights,” the motion concludes. 

The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said they will respond in court filings of their own.

Mangione, 26, was also indicted in the Southern District of New York on federal charges of stalking and murdering Thompson, as well as using electronic communications, interstate travel and a firearm when he allegedly killed the healthcare insurance CEO.

Luigi Mangione departs the courtroom following his arraignment

Luigi Mangione departs the courtroom following his arraignment in New York City Criminal Court on Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News Digital)

He was also charged federally with one count of using a firearm to commit murder, one count of interstate stalking resulting in death, one count of stalking through use of interstate facilities resulting in death and one count of discharging a firearm that was equipped with a silencer in furtherance of a crime of violence. 

Mangione is accused of ambushing Thompson outside a Manhattan hotel where UnitedHealthcare’s annual shareholder conference was being held on Dec. 4, 2024. Prosecutors believe the fatal shooting was meant to send a message to the healthcare insurance industry based on a manifesto found on the suspect when he was arrested days after Thompson’s murder.

He would face the death penalty if convicted. 

Fox News Digital’s Audrey Conklin contributed to this report. 

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like
Investigators uncover possible serial killer linked to women’s murders, missing TV anchor

Investigators Discover Potential Serial Killer Connection to Women’s Murders and Disappearance of TV Anchor

This week, officials disclosed that a man once considered a key figure…
Mystery man in dapper suit goes viral after appearing in Louvre heist investigation photo

Stylish Stranger in Suit Captures Internet’s Attention Amid Louvre Heist Probe

That’s quite the eye-catching ensemble. A man who inadvertently became part of…
GIF of agents clashing with protesters in Portland at an ICE facility

Protesters Captured on Video Clashing with Federal Officers at Portland ICE Facility, Leading to Arrests

A woman was taken into custody outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs…
Nelly Furtado stepping away from performing for 'the foreseeable future'

Nelly Furtado Announces Hiatus from the Stage: What’s Next for the Pop Star?

More than a year after unveiling her seventh studio album “7,” Nelly…
'I am not done': Kamala Harris hints at another White House bid

Kamala Harris Teases 2024 White House Run: ‘I Am Not Done’ Signals Potential Presidential Campaign

In a recent interview with the BBC, former Vice President Kamala Harris…
Fetterman, McCormick Unite in Bipartisan Push to Reopen Government

Fetterman and McCormick Lead Bipartisan Charge to End Government Shutdown

On Thursday, Senators John Fetterman (D-PA) and Dave McCormick (R-PA) stood united…
'I'm not afraid of anything anymore': St. Augustine pastor reflects one year after brutal stabbing

St. Augustine Pastor Finds Courage and Resilience One Year After Surviving Brutal Stabbing

“Stabbings are not something that happen at breakfast,” remarked Rev. Matt Marino,…
DC sniper's ex-wife reveals his chilling threat before killing spree

Ex-Wife of DC Sniper Discloses Ominous Warning Prior to Deadly Rampage

Dr. Mildred Muhammad found herself on a chilling hit list, targeted for…
ICE, CBP seize 400 firearms hidden in fake trailer walls at southern border crossing

ICE and CBP Uncover 400 Firearms Concealed in False Trailer Walls at Southern Border Checkpoint

EXCLUSIVE TO FOX: In Laredo, Texas, a father and son have been…
Chicago Halloween events: Pet costumes on display at 38th Annual Streeterville Dog Halloween Party at Museum of Contemporary Art

Unleash the Spooky Fun: 38th Annual Streeterville Dog Halloween Party at Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art

CHICAGO (WLS) — This past weekend, Chicago was the stage for a…
Freed Gaza Prisoner Reveals “Hell Beneath the Ground”

Inside Gaza’s Underground Nightmare: A Former Detainee’s Harrowing Tale

A recently freed Palestinian detainee has delivered devastating testimony detailing what he…
FBI Director Kash Patel plans travel to China in fentanyl crackdown effort

FBI Director Kash Patel to Visit China in Strategic Move to Combat Fentanyl Crisis

FBI Director Kash Patel is scheduled to travel to China next month,…