Luigi Mangione appears in court as lawyers seek to exclude notebooks, guns and other key evidence

Luigi Mangione, accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan a year ago this week, took the stand Monday, with his attorney questioning the admissibility of key evidence in the case.

Mr. Mangione, 27, has pleaded not guilty to state and federal murder charges, which carry a possible death penalty.

The preliminary hearing could last several days and defense attorneys are expected to call numerous witnesses, including one from Pennsylvania, where he was arrested at a McDonald’s.

In September, a judge dismissed state terrorism-related murder charges against Mr. Mangione, saying prosecutors had failed to find evidence to justify the charges.

Mangione’s legal team now hopes to convince a judge to exclude evidence including a gun and a notebook in which prosecutors say he laid out a motive.

The defendant was arrested days after he allegedly shot Thompson, a father of two, as he walked into an investor meeting on a busy Manhattan street on December 4, 2024.

Dates for his two trials have not yet been set.

Mangione walked into the courtroom Monday wearing a gray suit and shirt, and court staff removed his hand restraints before he entered the courtroom at the request of his attorneys.

This week’s hearing focuses on whether prosecutors illegally obtained evidence from Mr. When Mangione was arrested Altoona, Pa., and whether it should be excluded for that reason.

Defense lawyers are seeking to suppress some of the statements Mr Mangione made to police after his arrest, including allegedly giving them a false name.

They believe he did so before police read him his rights, including the right to remain silent.

His lawyers also want to exclude from the trial a 9 mm handgun that prosecutors say matches the one used in the murder, as well as writing found in Mangione’s backpack.

Prosecutors allege that Mr. Mangione, a scion of a prominent Maryland family and an Ivy League graduate, wrote in a notebook about the “deadly, greedy Medicare cartel.”

But defense attorneys argued that his backpack was searched without a warrant and therefore the items found in the backpack should be excluded.

Eliminating these two key pieces of evidence – pointing to the murder weapon and motive – would be a huge victory for Mr. Mangione’s legal team.

But New York criminal defense attorney Dmitry Shakhnevich said the chance of that happening is “almost non-existent.”

He said that’s because there are numerous exceptions to the Constitution’s requirement for law enforcement to obtain individual search warrants, including some that may be involved in this case.

“In a case like this, a manhunt was launched for a violent suspect who committed this crime in full view of New York City, but no warrant was obtained for his arrest,” Shakhnevich said.

“When they find him, they search him.”

Prosecutors say they have other key evidence against the defendants, including DNA or fingerprint Items discarded near the crime scene.

Sachnevich said Mangione’s lawyers may have realized there was little chance of excluding the evidence.

He added that the main reason defense attorneys pursue such proceedings is to preview trial testimony from law enforcement.

The court has so far heard from Sergeant Chris McLaughlin, the NYPD’s deputy commissioner of public information, who was asked to review surveillance images following the shooting.

Prosecutors in court also played CCTV footage of the killing. A worker who handles security cameras at an Altoona McDonald’s also testified.

Prosecutors referred the court to a 911 call from the fast-food restaurant’s manager, who said customers told her a customer looked like a suspect in Thompson’s killing. The manager said she looked up photos of Mr. Mangione online but could only make out Mr. Mangione’s eyebrows while eating at the restaurant because he was wearing a hat and mask.

The court also heard from a prison guard at the prison where Mangione was being held that he appeared “poised and logical” when the two discussed literature and health care, although Mangione did not comment on the latter topic.

The official said Mr. Mangione was placed under high security because they wanted to avoid an “Epstein-type situation,” referring to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who committed suicide in a federal detention center.

Shakhnevich said the legal team wants to get this kind of information from witnesses so they can understand what people are likely to say at trial and watch for any inconsistencies in their statements.

“The benefit of a hearing is that you can have law enforcement officials testify and you can have them provide testimony at a later trial,” he said.

Mr. Mangione’s legal team has also been working to stop the federal government from seeking death penalty.

They said comments by senior officials, including Attorney General Pam Bondi, charging Mangione with murder, which they claimed were politically motivated, undermined his case.