The feds have now charged the UnitedHealthcare CEO suspect. Could he quickly face the loss of life penalty? | EUROtoday
Get real time updates directly on you device, subscribe now.
The newest headlines from our reporters throughout the US despatched straight to your inbox every weekday
Your briefing on the most recent headlines from throughout the US
Your briefing on the most recent headlines from throughout the US
Luigi Mangione, the suspect within the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, will now face federal costs along with the New York state homicide indictment already introduced in opposition to him, based on experiences.
Federal costs – which shall be introduced by prosecutors from the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, based on The New York Times – would probably permit prosecutors to pursue the loss of life penalty ought to Mangione, 26, finally be discovered responsible of homicide, capital punishment having been outlawed in New York for many years.
According to paperwork unsealed on Thursday, and a sworn affidavit by an FBI agent, federal prosecutors intend to cost him with homicide by use of a firearm, two stalking costs and a firearms offense.
The paperwork don’t specify whether or not the loss of life penalty shall be sought, with the matter prone to be determined by incoming president Donald Trump’s new-look Justice Department subsequent 12 months.
The improvement comes after Mangione appeared in a Pennsylvania courtroom on Thursday and formally waived his proper to an extradition listening to earlier than being returned to New York.
Earlier this week, the suspect was formally indicted by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on three homicide costs over the assault on Thompson, 50, who was shot lifeless exterior of the Hilton resort in Midtown Manhattan on December 4 by a masked assailant armed with a handgun who had lain in look forward to him.
The incident led to a five-day manhunt, culminating in Mangione being arrested at a department of McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on December 9 after native police obtained a tip-off from a fellow buyer responding to a picture of the shooter circulated by the NYPD.
He was discovered to have a pistol, ammunition and pretend identification playing cards about his individual, in addition to a 262-word “manifesto” denouncing the American healthcare system, having lately undergone again surgical procedure.
In bringing the fees, Bragg known as the episode “a frightening, well-planned, targeted murder that was intended to cause shock and attention and intimidation”.
The hardest penalty Mangione might face in state courtroom, ought to he be convicted of Thompson’s homicide, can be life imprisonment with out parole, which the Justice Department might deem inadequate.
“The state case will proceed in parallel with any federal case,” mentioned Danielle Filson, a spokesperson for the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
“This defendant brazenly shot Mr Thompson point blank on a Manhattan sidewalk.
“The Manhattan DA’s office, working with our partners at the NYPD, is dedicated to securing justice for this heinous murder with charges of murder in the first degree.”
Karen Friedman Agnifilo, Mangione’s lawyer, mentioned in a press release that the Southern District’s involvement within the case raised various points she discovered disconcerting.
“The federal government’s reported decision to pile on top of an already overcharged first-degree murder and state terror case is highly unusual and raises serious constitutional and statutory double jeopardy concerns,” she mentioned. “We are ready to fight these charges in whatever court they are brought.”
The suspect’s supporters proceed to donate generously to a “defense” fund arrange on his behalf after he grew to become a problematic folks hero to some throughout his flight from justice.
The nameless fund, “The December 4th Legal Committee”, had amassed nearly $157,000 in donations by way of the crowdfunding web site GiveSendGo on the time of writing.
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro has already been compelled to denounce “vigilante justice” in response to the darkish fandom Mangione has attracted.
“In America, we do not kill people in cold blood to resolve policy differences or express a viewpoint,” he mentioned within the aftermath of the suspect’s arrest.
“In some dark corners, this killer is being hailed as a hero. Hear me on this: he is no hero.”
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/crime/luigi-mangione-brian-thompson-murder-death-penalty-b2667349.html