Mangione pleads guilty to federal charges in UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting

Luigi Mangione, a 28-year-old man accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, pleaded guilty on Friday to federal stalking charges. The shooting took place in midtown Manhattan when Thompson was heading into a hotel for a business meeting. Mangione's guilty plea came just a few weeks before his state trial was set to start. The case has drawn nationwide attention since Thompson was killed nearly two years ago.

Mangione entered his plea during a court hearing before U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett. The hearing was quickly arranged this week after both prosecutors and Mangione's defense lawyers requested it. During the hearing, Mangione officially admitted to the federal stalking charges against him.

After the shooting, police launched a five-day manhunt that people across the country followed closely. Mangione was arrested at a McDonald's in Altoona, Pennsylvania. Officers found him with a 9mm pistol fitted with a silencer that matched the weapon used in the shooting, as well as a fake ID and a notebook filled with written complaints about the health insurance industry.

The federal case against Mangione had originally included much more serious charges. In January, Judge Garnett threw out murder and illegal firearm charges that could have made Mangione eligible for the death penalty. After those charges were removed, only the two stalking charges remained in the federal case.

Mangione also faces a separate set of charges in New York state court, including second-degree murder and weapons offenses. A state judge had already dismissed terrorism charges last fall, ruling that the evidence for them was not strong enough. Both the federal and state charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Mangione's guilty plea in federal court could create a serious legal problem for the state case. New York has a rule called 'double jeopardy,' which says a person cannot be tried twice for the same act or crime. The state trial's jury selection was set to begin on September 8, but Mangione's federal plea could now put that process in jeopardy.

Mangione's attorney, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, had already called it 'highly unusual' for someone to face charges in both federal and state court at the same time. State prosecutors sent the state judge a warning letter in July, saying a federal guilty plea 'would operate to defeat a just outcome in the state prosecution.' They urged the judge to think carefully before accepting any plea deal. A state prosecutor also wrote that any agreement must reflect the seriousness of the crime and the painful loss felt by Thompson's family.