US Attorney General Pam Bondi said Tuesday she has directed federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty against Luigi Mangione, the man accused of gunning down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a Manhattan hotel on Dec. 4. Mangione, 26, faces separate federal and state murder charges for the killing. The federal charges include a charge of murder through use of a firearm, which carries the possibility of the death penalty, reports the AP. The maximum punishment on the state charges is life in prison. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to the state indictment and hasn't entered a plea to the federal charges.
"Luigi Mangione's murder of Brian Thompson—an innocent man and father of two young children—was a premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America," Bondi said in a statement. "After careful consideration, I have directed federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty in this case as we carry out President Trump's agenda to stop violent crime and Make America Safe Again."
According to prosecutors, Mangione had a spiral notebook in which he expressed hostility toward the health insurance industry and wealthy executives. UnitedHealthcare is the largest health insurer in the US, though the company said Mangione was never a client. Among the entries, the complaint said, was one from August 2024 that said "the target is insurance" because "it checks every box," and one from October that describes an intent to "[whack]" an insurance company CEO. (More Luigi Mangione stories.)
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