U.S. prosecutors formally told the court on Thursday that they plan to seek the death penalty for Luigi Mangione, who is accused of killing UnitedHealth Group CEO Brian Thompson in New York City last year.
Mangione, 26, is scheduled to appear in federal court in Manhattan on Friday to enter a plea to the charges against him.
He had previously pleaded not guilty to a separate New York state indictment charging him with the murder of Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealth.
While public officials condemned the killing, some Americans have praised Mangione, saying he has drawn attention to the high cost of health insurance in the United States.
In explaining their decision, prosecutors wrote in their brief that Mangione “presents a future danger because he has expressed an intent to target an entire industry and mobilize political and social opposition to the industry by engaging in an act of deadly violence.”
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced earlier this month that the Justice Department would seek the death penalty for Mangione.
If Mangione is convicted, a jury will decide in a special phase of the trial whether to recommend the death penalty. Any such recommendation must be unanimous, and the judge must impose it.
Thompson was killed on December 4 outside a hotel in Midtown Manhattan, where the company was gathering for an investor conference.
Photo CNN
