- - Luigi Mangione won't face most serious federal charges, judge rules

Jeanine Santucci, USA TODAY January 30, 2026 at 11:43 PM

0

The death penalty has been taken off the table for Luigi Mangione in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, after the most serious federal charges were dismissed by a judge on Jan. 30.

Mangione was charged with four counts federally in the Dec. 4, 2024, shooting outside a Manhattan hotel: two counts of stalking, a weapons offense and murder through the use of a firearm.

In a Jan. 30 court order, U.S. District Judge Margaret M. Garnett granted a motion to dismiss two of the charges, including murder through the use of the firearm, and another weapons charge, taking the death penalty off the table in the case. Mangione will still go to trial on the stalking charges, which allege he caused Thompson's death.

"(T)he chief practical effect of the legal infirmities of Counts Three and Four, and this Court's decision that they must be dismissed, is solely to foreclose the death penalty as an available punishment to be considered by the jury that will otherwise determine, at trial, whether to convict the Defendant for causing Brian Thompson's death," Garnett wrote in the order.

1 / 8See Luigi Mangione at NYC court in UnitedHealthcare CEO killing caseA New York State court officer stands near a person in a costume holding a banner outside Manhattan Criminal Court, ahead of the appearance of Luigi Mangione, the suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson, for a pre-trial hearing on murder charges, in New York City, Dec. 1, 2025.

Mangione is expected to appear in court later on Jan. 30, where a representative for his legal team said remarks on the new order will be given.

In separate state charges, Mangione pleaded not guilty to murder, weapons and forgery court in New York.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Luigi Mangione federal murder charge dropped, death penalty off table

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Breaking”