Luigi Mangione seeks ‘extreme emotional disturbance’ defense in CEO killing case

Luigi Mangione, accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan, plans to argue he was in a state of "extreme emotional disturbance" at his upcoming September trial.

Luigi Mangione, the man accused ​of gunning down a health ‌insurance executive ​in Manhattan, plans to argue at trial that he was in a state of "extreme emotional disturbance" when he ‌allegedly committed the crime, a judge revealed at a court hearing Wednesday. Mangione is accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a hotel in Midtown in December 2024, a brazen ‌killing that was widely condemned by public officials but became emblematic of Americans’ frustration ‌with rising healthcare costs and health insurance industry practices. Mangione pleaded not guilty in December 2024 to state murder, weapons and forgery charges brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. His trial is set for September ⁠before Justice ​Gregory Carro in Manhattan.

Thompson ⁠led UnitedHealth Group's insurance unit before he was shot dead in the early morning outside a hotel where ⁠he was staying for an investor conference. Graphic footage of the killing and a five-day manhunt ​for a suspect made the case a media fixture and social media sensation. Mangione ⁠was arrested in Pennsylvania. Mangione separately pleaded not guilty in April 2025 to murder, weapons and stalking charges brought ⁠by ​Manhattan federal prosecutors. U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett, who is overseeing that case, threw out the murder and weapons charges over legal technicalities in a surprise ruling in January. ⁠That decision eliminated the possibility that Mangione would face the death penalty, though he still ⁠faces a possible ⁠sentence of life without parole if convicted of stalking.

Jury selection in that case is set to begin in September, and opening statements in ‌the trial ‌are scheduled for November.