Friday’s hearing — Mangione’s first appearance in Manhattan federal court since his April arraignment — put in sharper relief the two-track legal battle he faces: a federal case in which the government is seeking execution and a parallel state murder case that has no scheduled trial date.

U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett said Friday that Luigi Mangione’s federal death penalty trial in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson could begin as early as December, setting a tentative schedule while she weighs defense motions to strip the case of its capital designation and dismiss two of the four charges against him.

If the death penalty remains on the table, Garnett said, trial could begin in December or possibly January 2027, a timeline consistent with what federal prosecutors had suggested. If it is removed, she said, trial could start in October. Either way, Garnett said she expects jury selection to begin around Sept. 8. No trial date has been scheduled in Mangione’s parallel state murder case; prosecutors had previously said they expected the state trial to come first.

Friday’s proceeding was Mangione’s first appearance in Manhattan federal court since his April 25 arraignment.

Mangione’s lawyers — Karen Friedman Agnifilo and Marc Agnifilo — are asking Garnett to bar the government from pursuing the death penalty, throw out two of the four federal charges, and exclude certain evidence seized during his arrest.

Among the charges they seek to dismiss is the murder by firearm count, which is the legal basis for the government’s capital pursuit. They argue the charge is legally flawed.

The defense also contends that authorities turned Mangione’s December 2024 arrest into a “Marvel movie” spectacle and that officials publicly called for his execution before he was formally indicted — prejudicing his case.

Federal prosecutors countered that the murder charge is legally sufficient and that “pretrial publicity, even when intense” does not amount to a constitutional crisis. Any concerns about public perceptions can be addressed by carefully questioning prospective jurors about their prior knowledge of the case, prosecutors wrote in a court filing.

Garnett said she would rule at a later date on the defense’s motions. A follow-up pretrial conference is scheduled for Jan. 30.

Backpack evidence disputed

The judge is also weighing a defense request to suppress items found in a backpack during Mangione’s arrest — a challenge mirroring one filed in his state case. The defense argues the search was illegal because police had not yet obtained a warrant at the time.

Those items include a gun that police said matched the weapon used to kill Thompson and a notebook in which Mangione purportedly described his intent to “wack” a health insurance executive.

Garnett said she is not inclined to hold a separate hearing on the search issue, unlike in the state case, where a hearing lasted three weeks. The state judge said he would not rule on the evidence question until May.

Prosecutors say police were justified in searching the backpack to check for dangerous items and that the gun, notebook, and other evidence would have been discovered regardless.

Background

Thompson, 50, was killed Dec. 4, 2024, as he walked to a Manhattan hotel for UnitedHealth Group’s annual investor conference. Surveillance video showed a masked gunman shooting him from behind. Police said the words “delay,” “deny” and “depose” — a phrase associated with how insurers avoid paying claims — were written on the ammunition.

Mangione, 27, an Ivy League-educated scion of a wealthy Maryland family, was arrested five days later at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, about 230 miles west of Manhattan. He has pleaded not guilty to federal and state murder charges, which each carry the possibility of life in prison.

In September, a state judge threw out terrorism charges that had been filed against him in New York.

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced last year that she was directing federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty, declaring capital punishment was warranted for a “premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America.” Mangione’s lawyers argue that Bondi’s announcement — which she followed with Instagram posts and a television appearance — showed the decision was “based on politics, not merit” and tainted the grand jury process that led to his federal indictment weeks later.

Mangione, wearing a beige jail uniform, did not speak during the nearly three-hour hearing. After entering the courtroom, he greeted his lead attorneys with handshakes. Supporters gathered outside the courthouse, some wearing green clothing and carrying signs reading “Free Luigi” and “No Death For Luigi Mangione.”