NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
The judge overseeing accused Ivy League assassin Luigi Mangione’s federal case shrugged off his defense team’s push to have the trial delayed, saying she doesn’t want to be “held hostage” by the schedule of a state court judge handling another case against him.
U.S. Marshals escorted Mangione into the courtroom at 11:24 a.m. He wore a tan jail jumpsuit with his sleeves rolled up, leg shackles and no handcuffs.
The judge entered a minute later.
Karen Friedman Agnifilo, one of Mangione’s lead defense lawyers, asked for several months of extra time, saying Mangione’s legal team needed to prepare for the federal case after his state trial.
MANGIONE’S LAWYERS MAKE SECOND TRY TO TOSS MURDER WEAPON EVIDENCE IN NEW YORK STATE COURT
Luigi Mangione attends an evidentiary hearing in the murder case of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, at the Manhattan Supreme Court in New York, U.S., December 18, 2025. (Shannon Stapleton/Pool via Reuters)
“I don’t think what we’re asking for is unreasonable,” she said.
FOLLOW THE FOX TRUE CRIME TEAM ON X
Assistant U.S. Attorney Dominic Gentile argued that the defense’s logistical concerns could be addressed by changing the jury questionnaire schedule, which was set for a capital case. Mangione no longer faces the potential death penalty.
He added that both cases are expected to rely on the same facts and witnesses.
UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson pictured in an undated portrait provided by UnitedHealth. The executive was shot from behind and killed on his way to an investor conference in New York City in what prosecutors have described as a politically motivated assassination. (AP Photo/UnitedHealth Group via AP)
SIGN UP TO GET TRUE CRIME NEWSLETTER
Judge Margaret Garnett said she was more concerned about the jury selection process rather than trial prep — telling the parties she doesn’t envision a particularly complex proceeding.
She said her role is to ensure Mangione gets a fair trial in her courtroom, and she said whatever happens in the state case is not her concern.
SEND US A TIP HERE
Mangione faces numerous charges at the state and federal level in connection with the December 2024 assassination of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson, a 50-year-old father of two from Minnesota who was in New York City for a work conference when a gunman snuck up behind him and opened fire.
Members of the New York police crime scene unit investigate bullets lying on the sidewalk at the scene outside the Hilton Hotel in midtown Manhattan where Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, was fatally shot, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, in New York. (Stefan Jeremiah/AP)
The state trial, scheduled to take place before his federal trial, is expected to garner massive public attention and make jury selection more difficult, she explained.
LISTEN TO THE NEW ‘CRIME & JUSTICE WITH DONNA ROTUNNO’ PODCAST
“I’m a little troubled,” she said.
After a roughly 30-minute hearing, she proposed keeping close to the schedule put forth in February, with jury selection in the fall and opening statements on Oct. 26 or Nov. 2.
LIKE WHAT YOU’RE READING? FIND MORE ON THE TRUE CRIME HUB
UnitedHealthcare CEO slaying suspect Luigi Mangione pictured at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on Monday, Dec. 9, 2024. (Pennsylvania State Police)
The federal hearing came just under a month after a New York judge told Mangione’s defense to be ready for the state trial on June 8. Judge Gregory Carro had floated the idea of delaying it only if the federal trial was delayed first.
Bailiffs escorted Mangione out of that hearing after an unexpected outburst in which he claimed to be the victim of double jeopardy.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
“It’s the same trial twice,” he said. “One plus one is two. Double jeopardy by any common sense.”
Both courts have dismissed the most severe counts, but Mangione still faces life in prison if convicted. He also faces lesser charges in Pennsylvania, where police arrested him in a McDonald’s restaurant, in connection with the case.