By Jack Queen
NEW YORK, June 29 (Reuters) – Luigi Mangione, the man accused of fatally shooting a health insurance executive on a Manhattan sidewalk in 2024, is due for a hearing in federal court on Monday ahead of his federal trial on stalking charges after murder and weapons charges were thrown out.
Mangione, 28, is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a hotel in Midtown.
The shooting was condemned by public officials but became emblematic of the frustration felt by many Americans concerning rising healthcare costs and health insurance industry practices.
Mangione has pleaded not guilty in the federal case ahead of his trial scheduled for November before U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett in Manhattan. Mangione still faces murder charges brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg in New York state court.
At Monday’s hearing, the parties are expected to discuss jury selection and scheduling matters.
Garnett in January threw out the murder and weapons charges over legal technicalities. The ruling foreclosed a possible death penalty for Mangione, though he could still face a life sentence if convicted of stalking in the federal trial. Capital punishment would have been a possibility in a federal trial on murder charges, but it is not used under New York state law.
Thompson led UnitedHealth Group’s insurance unit before he was slain in the early morning outside a hotel where an investor conference was taking place. Mangione was arrested in Pennsylvania after a five-day manhunt.
Some critics of the health insurance industry have supported Mangione by raising money for his legal defense and attending his court appearances in solidarity.
Mangione has pleaded not guilty to the state murder, weapons and forgery charges brought by Bragg. His trial in that case is set for September before Justice Gregory Carro in Manhattan.
(Reporting by Jack Queen in New York; Editing by Will Dunham)
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