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Luigi Mangione’s lawyers say authorities are leaking his writings to cause 'public alarm'
By
Samantha Max
Published Mar 25, 2025
Modified Mar 26, 2025
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Steven Hirsch - Pool/Getty Images
By
Samantha Max
Published Mar 25, 2025
Modified Mar 26, 2025
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Luigi Mangione isn’t the one stoking terror among the public — law enforcement is — attorneys for the accused killer argue in a new motion filed in state court.
The defense attorneys said in court papers Monday night that authorities have painted Mangione as a “terrorist” and leaked his private writings to “cause the public alarm and fear that they now attribute to him.” They also said they want prosecutors to more expediently turn over evidence and give Mangione a specially programmed laptop he could use in detention to review discovery materials.
But instead of turning over evidence in court, Mangione’s attorneys said, law enforcement officials have shared information in the press.
“This behavior by law enforcement is wildly irresponsible,” they wrote. “They are spreading a message to the public intended to incite individuals who may as a result believe Mr. Mangione held purported viewpoints.”
Prosecutors have accused Mangione, a 26-year-old Ivy League graduate, of traveling to New York City and fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on Dec. 4. Surveillance video shows the perpetrator approaching the insurance executive outside a Midtown hotel in the early morning and shooting him from behind. The shooter then fled, sparking a dayslong search that ended with Mangione’s arrest in Altoona, Pennsylvania.
A Manhattan grand jury indicted Mangione in December on charges of first-degree murder in furtherance of terrorism, second-degree murder as an act of terrorism, criminal possession of a weapon and criminal possession of a forged instrument. He also faces murder and weapon charges in federal court, where he faces the possibility of the death penalty.
Mangione, who has pleaded not guilty, has become a folk hero for some admirers frustrated with corporate greed and the insurance industry — as well as those tantalized by his looks and fashion choices.
In the new filings, his defense lawyers said they have learned a “great deal” about the evidence in the case from law enforcement leaks and interviews with the media, citing various articles about the case. In one recent story they cited, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch told New York Magazine about how she reviewed scores of photos to try to identify Thompson’s shooter, who she said had a “chiseled” jawline and “wild” eyebrows.
Mangione’s attorneys said leaks and public statements by law enforcement officials have impeded their client’s right to a fair trial. They accused Manhattan prosecutors of withholding essential evidence at the same time that authorities are sharing information with the press. The lawyers said the Manhattan district attorney’s office has failed to turn over several key records, including testimony from various witnesses to the grand jury and evidence uncovered in electronic devices that police took from Mangione after his arrest.
In court papers, Assistant District Attorneys Joel Seidemann and Zachary Kaplan said the office has already turned over an extensive amount of materials and is working to review and redact the remaining records. Prosecutors also said the DA’s office has made “limited statements” to the press, while defense attorneys have “fanned the flames of public attention” and set up a website to share information about the case.
The dispute over evidence sharing comes as Gov. Kathy Hochul and many New York district attorneys, including Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, push for changes to a 2019 state law requiring prosecutors to more quickly turn over discovery materials to defense lawyers. Prosecutors say the new rules are too stringent, while defense attorneys say they’re necessary to ensure their clients can fight the allegations against them in court.
While prosecutors have yet to share some evidence in the case, Mangione’s attorneys said the DA’s office has already turned over hundreds of gigabytes worth of records.
Mangione's lawyers have asked prosecutors to give him a laptop he could use in jail to review evidence, saying “many federal inmates” at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where is being held, are provided laptops. They said federal prosecutors, but not state prosecutors, have agreed with their request.
Without a laptop, the lawyers said, it would be impossible for them to find enough time during visiting hours to review thousands of hours of video and more than 15,000 pages of records with Mangione while still meeting court deadlines. They said any records related to witnesses who are not members of law enforcement would not be on the laptop and would only be viewed with defense attorneys.
Mangione’s lawyers said the DA’s office has objected to their request for a laptop because several witnesses have faced threats. They said prosecutors have “no basis to believe that Mr. Mangione has any connection to the alleged witness threats.”
This article was updated with information from new court filings from the Manhattan District Attorney's Office.
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public safety
manhattan
Samantha Max
Samantha reports on whether New Yorkers feel safe and whether the institutions that are supposed to protect them are working. Before coming to WNYC/Gothamist, she spent three years covering the criminal justice system in Tennessee for Nashville Public Radio. Her reporting on Nashville's police department received multiple awards, including the Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize. Samantha was also part of the inaugural class of Report for America, a service journalism program that sends up-and-coming reporters to local newsrooms across the country. She is a Northwestern University grad, a Baltimore native and fluent in Spanish. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal: samanthamaxwnyc.93.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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