UnitedHealth CEO murder suspect Mangione hires former top NY prosecutor

By Patricia Hurtado and David Voreacos 

Luigi Mangione, the suspect in the killing of a UnitedHealth Group Inc. executive, hired former veteran Manhattan prosecutor Karen Friedman Agnifilo to defend him on New York murder charges, according to her law firm. 

Friedman Agnifilo spent decades working in New York City’s criminal justice system, serving as the top assistant for seven years to former Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, the predecessor to current DA Alvin Bragg, before entering private practice. 

 

She will defend a 26-year-old accused of shooting Brian Thompson outside a Manhattan hotel on Dec. 4 and fleeing before his arrest five days later at a McDonalds in Altoona, Pennsylvania. 

New York authorities said they’ve built a strong case against Mangione. The evidence, they say, includes videotape of his movements, fingerprints linking him to the crime, shell casings tied to the ghost gun he had at his arrest, a manifesto decrying the health-care industry and a notebook discussing the targeted killing of a CEO.

 

 

Insanity Defense 

Friedman Agnifilo declined an interview request. Before she was hired, she hinted at what a potential defense strategy for Mangione might be. 

 

“It looks to me like there might be a not guilty by reason of insanity defense that they’re going to be thinking about because the evidence is going to be so overwhelming that he did what he did,” she told CNN. 

 

In an insanity defense, Friedman Agnifilo could argue Mangione had a “mental disease or defect,” meaning they would have to prove he didn’t understand the nature and consequences of shooting Thompson, or that doing so was wrong.  Such a defense, if a judge allows it, would require an evaluation of Mangione by an independent psychiatrist to determine if he’s fit to stand trial. 

FBI Tip 

Mangione was arrested after a massive manhunt that included the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The FBI’s New York office said Friday that it got multiple tips about the suspect’s possible identity, even before he was spotted at a McDonalds. One of them came from the San Francisco Police Department, and it was referred to the New York Police Department. 

 

“Extensive sharing of the photos by law enforcement led to the identification by a citizen and subsequent arrest by the Altoona Police Department,” according to the FBI. 

 

Mangione’s mother reported him missing to San Francisco police in November, according to the San Francisco Standard. 

 

New York authorities accused Mangione of murder and weapons offenses in an unsealed arrest warrant. Separately, officials in Pennsylvania, where Mangione is being detained, charged him separately for carrying an unlicensed gun and fake identification at the time of his arrest. 

 

Waiving Extradition 

In a court hearing on Tuesday in Pennsylvania, Mangione contested any request to move him to New York, potentially dragging out an extradition process that would ultimately turn him over to authorities in Manhattan. 

 

But on Friday, Bragg said Mangione may be changing his mind and now agree to waive extradition to face the charges in New York.

 

“Indications are that the defendant may waive, but that waiver is not complete until a court proceeding, which from my understanding from court officials in Pennsylvania, cannot happen until Tuesday,” Bragg said, adding that prosecutors will continue to build their case whether he fights extradition or not. 

 

Mangione’s lawyer in Pennsylvania, Thomas Dickey, didn’t respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for the Pennsylvania courts said that as of Friday, there were no extradition hearings scheduled. 

 

NY Attorney 

Friedman Agnifilo, a graduate of the University of California, Los Angeles and Georgetown University Law Center, first joined the Manhattan DA’s Office in 1992. She worked as a prosecutor there until 2006, joining the mayor’s office for four years before returning as trial division chief and then the chief assistant to Vance. 

 

She “supervised all complex and high-profile matters in the office and managed a team of 1,500 people with a $120 million budget, giving her the experience and judgment to manage complex, high-stakes cases,” according to her biography. 

 

In 2021, she went into private practice, and she recently joined the law firm launched earlier this year by her husband Marc Agnifilo. She has also acted as a television commentator, host of a weekly podcast on the law, and legal advisor to the popular TV show Law and Order.