Luigi Mangione in federal plea talks ahead of hastily scheduled hearing, sources say

(CNN) — Plea negotiations are ongoing between Luigi Mangione and federal prosecutors to resolve criminal charges tied to the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, people familiar with the matter said, as a hearing was hastily scheduled before the federal judge on Friday.

Sources familiar with the discussions caution that talks are fluid and they may not result in a resolution.

In June, CNN reported that Mangione’s attorneys previously spoke with federal prosecutors about a potential plea deal, but none was reached at the time, a source familiar with the discussions said at the time.

A lawyer for Mangione declined to comment. A spokesperson for the US attorney’s office declined to comment.

In a statement earlier this summer addressing reported plea talks, Mangione’s lawyer Karen Friedman Agnifilo said, “This information attributed to ‘anonymous sources’ is part of a troubling, deliberate pattern by prosecutors and law enforcement to prejudice Luigi, manipulate public opinion, and violate his constitutional right to a fair trial and impartial jury.”

“Every defendant in America is presumed innocent until proven guilty, including Luigi, who, unlike any other defendant, has to fight the same charges twice,” she said, referring to both the state and federal charges filed against her client.

Mangione briefly appeared in state court Tuesday for his final pretrial conference. The judge confirmed that jury selection in that case would start on September 8.

Hours later, federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York filed a joint request for a conference with the US judge overseeing their case, which is scheduled to go to trial in January. No explanation for the conference was included in the letter, but sources say plea talks could be discussed, among other issues. The judge set a hearing for Friday morning.

Mangione previously pleaded not guilty in both cases: In the Southern District of New York, Mangione faces federal stalking charges connected to Thompson’s killing. In the state case Mangione faces second-degree murder and weapons charges.

A guilty plea to federal charges could affect the state prosecution under New York’s double jeopardy law, which prohibits someone from being tried for the same crime twice – though the immediate impact is not clear.

The prospect of double jeopardy has been raised in court. After news outlets reported the plea negotiations in June, prosecutors with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office filed a letter to the state judge to acknowledge the possibility.

“If a proposed federal guilty plea would operate to defeat a just outcome in the state prosecution, the People could advise the federal district court of that consequence, and the court should consider that fact in deciding whether to accept the plea, as well as any opposition by the victim’s family to such a resolution.”

The letter went on to say “any guilty pleas in these matters must account for the seriousness of defendant’s offenses, the loss of an innocent life, the impact of those crimes on the victim’s family, and the other state interests that are implicated, including the sanctity of life principle that underpins the state homicide charges.”

Under the most serious federal charges, Mangione could face life in prison. If Mangione, 28, were convicted of the state murder charge, he could face 25 years to life in state prison.

Thompson was gunned down outside a hotel in Midtown Manhattan on December 4, 2024, as he was walking to a UnitedHealthcare investor conference. Authorities said the words “deny,” “delay” and “depose” were found on shell casings and a bullet at the scene.

A multiday manhunt ensued and five days later Mangione was arrested more than 200 miles away at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after the manager called 911.

Prosecutors allege a handgun in Mangione’s backpack matched the ballistics evidence found at the crime scene. Authorities said they also found a notebook in the bag with writings in which Mangione allegedly expressed anger toward the healthcare industry and said he wanted to “wack” the CEO at the “annual parasitic bean-counter convention.”

Mangione’s lawyers have since successfully narrowed both cases. The state judge granted their motion to dismiss a terrorism-related charge, and the federal judge threw out the murder count in the federal case that would have made it eligible for the death penalty.

But Mangione’s defense lost arguments to exclude the gun and his writings from being used at the trials after both judges found the search of his backpack that produced that evidence was legal.

In June, Mangione’s lawyers said he would pursue a psychiatric defense in the state case, in which he would admit to the murder but argue he did it under extreme emotional disturbance. The next day they abruptly changed their minds.

No explanation was given, but that psychiatric defense is not available in federal court. And any admission in state court could be used against him in the federal trial.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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