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Luigi Mangione, the man accused of gunning down a health insurance executive in Manhattan, plans to argue at trial that he was in a state of “extreme emotional disturbance” when he allegedly committed the crime, a judge revealed at a court hearing Wednesday.
The strategy poses steep legal hurdles but could lead to a jury convicting Mangione of the lesser crime of manslaughter, which carries significantly lighter sentences.
Mangione, who appeared in court in a dark suit and white shirt, is accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a hotel in December 2024. The brazen killing was widely condemned by public officials but became emblematic of Americans’ frustration with rising health-care costs and health insurance industry practices.
Mangione pleaded not guilty after his arrest later that month to state murder, weapons and forgery charges brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. His trial is set for September before Justice Gregory Carro in Manhattan.
Under New York law, murder defendants can seek to convince a jury that their actions can be explained by an “extreme emotional disturbance” that reduces their criminal culpability.
Carro will ultimately decide whether there is enough evidence for the murder charge to be reduced.
Thompson led UnitedHealth Group’s (UNH.N) insurance unit before he was shot dead in the early morning outside a hotel where he was staying for an investor conference.
Graphic footage of the killing and a five-day manhunt for a suspect made the case a media fixture and social media sensation. Mangione was arrested in Pennsylvania.
Mangione separately pleaded not guilty in April 2025 to murder, weapons and stalking charges brought by Manhattan federal prosecutors.
U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett, who is overseeing that case, threw out the murder and weapons charges over legal technicalities in a surprise ruling in January. That decision eliminated the possibility that Mangione would face the death penalty, though he still faces a possible sentence of life without parole if convicted of stalking.
Jury selection in that case is set to begin in September, and opening statements in the trial are scheduled for November.
