Mangione wants a laptop in jail while he awaits trial in killing of
UnitedHealcare CEO
[March 25, 2025]
By JENNIFER PELTZ
NEW YORK (AP) — Luigi Mangione is asking for a laptop in jail, but just
for legal purposes — not for communicating with anyone — as he awaits
trial in the killing of UnitedHealthcare's CEO.
In a court filing made public late Monday, Mangione's lawyers proposed
that he get a laptop configured solely to let him view a vast amount of
documents, video and other material in the case surrounding the shooting
of Brian Thompson. Similar limited-laptop provisions have been made for
some other defendants in the federal lockup where Mangione is being
held.
The Manhattan district attorney's office, which is prosecuting Mangione
on a rare New York state charge of murder as an act of terrorism, didn't
immediately respond to a request for comment. According to Mangione's
lawyers, prosecutors are frowning on the laptop request, saying that
some witnesses have been threatened.
Defense lawyer Karen Friedman Agnifilo wrote that there's “no connection
to Mr. Mangione for any of said alleged threats.”
Mangione, 26, is accused of gunning down Thompson in December outside a
Manhattan hotel where UnitedHealthcare was about to hold an investor
conference. Thompson, who was 50 and had two children in high school,
worked for decades within UnitedHealthcare and its parent company.
Mangione, an Ivy League computer science graduate from a Maryland real
estate family, has pleaded not guilty to the New York state charges. He
also faces a parallel federal case that carries the possibility of the
death penalty. He hasn't entered a plea to the federal charges or to
state-level gun possession and other charges in Pennsylvania, where he
was arrested days after Thompson's death.
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Luigi Mangione , accused of fatally shooting the UnitedHealthcare
CEO Brian Thompson in New York City and leading authorities on a
five-day search is scheduled, appears in court for a hearing, Feb.
21, 2025, in New York. (Steven Hirsch/New York Post via AP, Pool,
File)
Thompson's killing alarmed the corporate world, where some health
insurers hastily switched to remote work or online shareholder
meetings.
But at the same time, the case channeled some Americans’
frustrations with health insurance companies. Mangione's writings
and words on bullets recovered from the scene reflected animus
toward health insurers and corporate America, authorities have said.
Some people have lionized the accused killer, donated money to his
defense and even flocked to his court appearances. Others, including
elected officials, have deplored the praise for what they cast as
ideological violence and vigilante justice.
Through his lawyers, Mangione has released a statement thanking
supporters.
If he does get a laptop, it would be unable to connect to the
internet, run video games or play movies or other entertainment, his
lawyers said in Monday's filing. But it would let him examine, from
his jail cell, more than 15,000 pages of documents and thousands of
hours of video that prosecutors gathered and were required to turn
over to his attorneys.
Otherwise, he can view the material when meeting with his lawyers.
But they say there aren't enough visiting hours in the day for him
to do that and properly help prepare his defense.
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