Luigi Mangione’s lawyers abandon psychiatric defense strategy

In a dramatic turnaround, Luigi Mangione’s lawyers told a judge Thursday that they would no longer assert the psychiatric defense in the state court murder trial in the death of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

The change of heart came barely a day after Mangione’s lawyers told Judge Gregory Carro that they planned to pursue a defense based on the argument that the 28-year-old graduate of an elite university was suffering from emotional problems. extremes at the time of the murder, which occurred on December 4, 2024.

A request for comment was sent to a spokesperson for Mangione’s lawyers. The Manhattan district attorney’s office, which is prosecuting the case, declined to comment.

Mangione’s lawyers had until Thursday to provide prosecutors with information supporting the emotional disturbance argument. Also on Thursday, the transcript of a closed hearing held on June 3 on this case was made public after Judge Carro ordered the secrecy lifted.

If Mangione had maintained his defense of extreme emotional disorder, he would in effect have admitted to killing Brian Thompson, but to having done so due to extenuating circumstances. This would not have relieved him of his responsibility, but could have earned him a shorter prison sentence.

If a jury accepts this defense, it is required to convict the defendant of involuntary manslaughter, which carries a sentence of up to 25 years in prison, rather than murder, which carries a potential sentence of life in prison.

In a letter to Carro on Thursday, Mangione’s lawyer, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, said the defense was “respectfully withdrawing” its notice under New York’s psychiatric defense law.

Mangione has pleaded not guilty to the state and federal charges against him. His trial in state court is scheduled to begin September 8. His federal trial, which focuses on harassment charges, is scheduled to begin October 13.

At Wednesday’s hearing, Karen Friedman Agnifilo challenged Mr. Carro’s decision to lift secrecy on documents related to his psychiatric defense, saying it would be “prejudicial to his defense on the same facts” in his federal trial, where a defense based on extreme emotional disorder is not permitted.

An emotional disorder defense is not the same as a not guilty by reason of insanity defense, which would allow a defendant to be placed in a mental institution rather than prison.

Brian Thompson, 50, was killed while walking to a Manhattan hotel for UnitedHealth Group’s annual investor conference. Surveillance video showed a masked man shooting him in the back. According to police, the words “delay”, “deny” and “depose” were written on the ammunition, imitating a phrase used to describe the way insurers avoid paying claims.

Mangione, from a wealthy Maryland family, was arrested five days later at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, about 230 miles west of Manhattan.

At a hearing last month, Judge Carro ruled that a gun and a notebook, which prosecutors say link Mangione to the murder, could be used as evidence against him.

The gun, a 3D-printed pistol, matched the one used to kill Brian Thompson, prosecutors said. The notebook states the intention to “liquidate” a health insurance company executive and rebel against “the murderous health insurance cartel, fueled by greed.”