Mangione argues for suspension of death penalty in his case

Mangione argues for suspension of death penalty in his case

AARON KATERSKY

Sat, December 20, 2025 at 6:41 PM UTC

3 min read

Attorneys for Luigi Mangione are arguing the death penalty should be suspended from his federal murder case due to Attorney General Pam Bondi's alleged "conflict of interest," according to a new court filing.

In an overnight court filing, defense attorneys accused Bondi of failing to disclose her work at the lobbying firm Ballard Partners, which "lists United Health Group as a regular client," and "that she personally financially profited from Ballard's lucrative relationship with UHG."

Mangione is accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson in New York City in December 2024. He has pleaded not guilty to federal charges that accused him of stalking and murdering Thompson and has been fighting the government’s notice of intent to seek the death penalty if he’s convicted.

Luigi Mangione's pretrial hearing concludes as judge says he'll issue ruling on evidence in May

The defense called it a conflict of interest that should have stopped Bondi from directing prosecutors to seek the death penalty.

Shannon Stapleton/Reuters - PHOTO: Luigi Mangione attends an evidentiary hearing in the murder case of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, at the Manhattan Supreme Court in New York, December 18, 2025.

"When Ms. Bondi left Ballard Partners to become the Attorney General in 2025, the very first defendant she personally selected to be executed was the man accused of killing the CEO of her former client,” the defense filing argued.

“The Attorney General’s financial connection to UHG represents a conflict of interest that should have caused her to recuse herself from making any decisions on this case," attorneys for Mangione wrote.

DA's office says it won't use certain statements Luigi Mangione made at station house following arrest

The defense argued the pursuit of the death penalty violates Mangione’s due process rights.

"The Attorney General's past and present financial interest in Ballard Partners, which continues to lobby the government on behalf of UHG and UHC, implicates Mr. Mangione's due process rights because the very person empowered to seek his death has a financial stake in the case she is prosecuting," the filing said.

The United States Attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York customarily declines to comment on ongoing cases and is expected to file a written response to the defense argument.

Attorneys for Mangione have been fighting to exclude evidence from his forthcoming murder trial in state court. The new defense filing in the federal case used some of the testimony from that suppression hearing to argue the evidence should also be excluded from Mangione’s federal case.

The defense argued the search of Mangione’s backpack was illegal because, at the time, he was handcuffed, separated from his backpack by several feet and was surrounded by Altoona police officers.

"There was no reasonable possibility that Mr. Mangione could have evaded the numerous officers surrounding him and opened his zippered backpack while rear cuffed. Accordingly, law enforcement’s search of Mr. Mangione’s backpack at the McDonald’s cannot be justified as a search incident to a lawful arrest," the defense wrote.

The pretrial hearing for the state case concluded on Thursday. New York Judge Gregory Carro gave the defense until Jan. 29 to make its final argument about what evidence should be excluded in writing. Prosecutors have until March 5 to respond. The defense then has two weeks to submit a response.

Carro said he expected to issue his decision about what, if any, evidence to exclude on May 18, at which point he would also set a date for trial.

About Our Ads

Source