What’s new
Luigi Mangione was charged Thursday in New York with four federal crimes, including murder by use of a firearm in the Dec. 4 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that Southern District of New York Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dominic A. Gentile, Jun Xiang, and Alexandra Messiter will prosecute the federal case.
News week contacted Mangione’s defense attorney, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, by email Thursday evening for comment.
Why it matters
Mangione’s federal charges are in addition to charges of first-degree murder, second-degree intentional murder and second-degree murder in an act of terrorism in New York State. He also faces counterfeiting and firearms charges in Pennsylvania.
A federal murder conviction would make Mangione eligible for the death penalty.
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What you need to know
The federal charges against Mangione include: one count of using a firearm to commit murder; one count of interstate stalking resulting in death; one count of stalking using interstate facilities resulting in death; and one count of discharging a firearm equipped with a silencer during a crime of violence.
The murder charge carries a maximum sentence of death, while the other three counts carry a maximum sentence of life in prison. A DOJ press release notes that “a federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.”
Who are Dominic Gentile, Jun Xiang and Alexandra Messiter?
Gentile, Xiang and Messiter all bring years of legal experience to the Mangione case, although few personal details about the prosecutors were publicly available at the time of publication.
Messiter was sworn in last year after working at the private firm Krieger Kim & Lewin LLP. Gentile and Xiang worked together to secure the conviction earlier this year of a man responsible for a murder in New York in 2021. All three prosecutors have worked on murder cases.
What people say
Gentile, Xiang and Messiter work under the direction of Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Edward Y. Kim, who said in a statement Thursday that his office and “its law enforcement partners remain steadfast in our commitment to fighting violence in whatever form it takes.” “.
“As has been alleged, Luigi Mangione traveled to New York to stalk and shoot Thompson in broad daylight outside a Manhattan hotel, all in a grossly misguided attempt to broadcast Mangione’s views across the country,” Kim said. “But it wasn’t a debate, it was murder, and Mangione now faces federal charges.”
What happens next
Mangione is expected to stand trial on the New York state murder charges before the federal charges, although the exact timeline has not yet been determined.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg told reporters Thursday that his office was having “conversations with our law enforcement partners” regarding the “parallel” federal case.
