A federal judge has tossed death penalty eligible charges for accused UnitedHealthCare CEO killer Luigi Mangione — dealing an embarrassing blow to the Justice Department.
The 27-year-old still faces the possibility of life in prison without parole if convicted of executing healthcare honcho Brian Thompson in a December 2024 targeted hit on a Manhattan sidewalk.
But Manhattan Federal Judge Margaret Garnett threw out Mangione’s charges that could have led to a rare death penalty trial in New York.
The jurist found that the death penalty eligible parts of the case, brought by the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District, had “legal infirmities,” according to her ruling.
The judge noted that the “chief practical effect” of dismissing that portion of the indictment is “solely to preclude the death penalty as an available punishment when the jury determines if the Defendant caused Brian Thompson’s death.”
The blow to federal prosecutors comes months after US Attorney Pam Bondi announced that the government would take the rare step of seeking the death penalty against Mangione, who has pleaded not guilty.