A judge on Monday dismissed terrorism charges against Luigi Mangione in New York state's case over the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, but he kept the state's second-degree murder charges. Mangione's lawyers argued that the New York case and a parallel federal death-penalty prosecution amounted to double jeopardy, reports the AP. But Judge Gregory Carro rejected that argument, saying it would be premature to make such a determination. It was Mangione's first court appearance in the state case since February. The 27-year-old Ivy League graduate has attracted a cult following as a stand-in for frustrations with the health insurance industry. Dozens of supporters showed up to his last hearing, many wearing the Luigi video game character's green color as a symbol of solidarity.
In his written decision, the judge said that although there's no doubt that the killing wasn't an ordinary street crime, New York law doesn't consider something terrorism simply because it was motivated by ideology. "While the defendant was clearly expressing an animus toward UHC, and the health care industry generally, it does not follow that his goal was to 'intimidate and coerce a civilian population,' and indeed, there was no evidence presented of such a goal," Carro wrote. Carro scheduled pretrial hearings in the case for Dec. 1, which is days before Mangione is next due in court in the federal case against him. Mangione pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of murder, including murder as an act of terrorism, in the Dec. 4 killing.
The Manhattan district attorney's office contends that there are no double jeopardy issues because neither of Mangione's cases has gone to trial and because the state and federal prosecutions involve different legal theories. Mangione's lawyers say the dueling cases have created a "legal quagmire" that makes it "legally and logistically impossible to defend against them simultaneously."
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The state charges, which carry a maximum of life in prison, allege that Mangione wanted to "intimidate or coerce a civilian population"—that is, insurance employees and investors. The federal charges allege that Mangione stalked Thompson and don't involve terrorism allegations. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced in April that she was directing federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty for "an act of political violence."
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