Luigi Mangione's attorneys push double jeopardy claim in court filing
Mangione pleaded guilty to federal stalking charges in August.
Luigi Mangione's attorneys are pushing for a double jeopardy claim in his state trial for the 2024 shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, according to a court filing submitted Friday.
Mangione pleaded guilty to stalking charges in federal court in August when he admitted to traveling to New York with the intent to kill Thompson and shooting him outside the Midtown Hilton.
His attorneys argued that the guilty plea means Mangione has been sufficiently prosecuted for killing the CEO and putting him on trial in state court for murder would amount to double jeopardy.
"There are no cases where the identical conduct -- the same victim, the same gun, the same actions by the defendant, the same place and the same time -- that was prosecuted by federal authorities was then also prosecuted by state authorities," defense attorney Karen Agnifilo wrote in the filing.
Agnifilo previously told reporters New York law "does not permit a person to be prosecuted and punished twice for the exact same crime under a statute that governs successive prosecutions."
The Manhattan District Attorney's office is pushing to put Mangione on trial in state court, arguing the deal offense of stalking and the state charge of murder address different misconduct. The new defense filing said the "core misconduct" is effectively the same.
"Yes, stalking can also, in some circumstances, apply to conduct different and less extreme than intending to kill someone. But this has nothing to do with whether it also applies to intentional killing," the defense filing said.
The Manhattan DA's office didn't immediately comment on the filing.
Mangione is slated to be sentenced for his federal charges in December.
That same month, Judge Gregory Carro will hear oral arguments on a defense motion to dismiss the state murder indictment.
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