BLAIR COUNTY, Pa. (Court TV) — Luigi Mangione’s defense team has filed a motion for bail modification and to exclude evidence seized by police, highlighting a series of contentious events that led to his arrest in Pennsylvania.
Mangione, 26, has entered a not guilty plea on several murder charges in New York, including murder as an act of terrorism, related to the Dec. 4 shooting of Brian Thompson outside a midtown Manhattan hotel. Thompson was ambushed and shot on the sidewalk while heading to an investor conference.
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 to confer with attorneys during a court hearing on Friday, Feb. 21, 2025, in New York. (Steven Hirsch/New York Post via AP, Pool)
The latest filing from Mangione’s defense attorney, Thomas M. Dickey, contests the denial of bail initially ordered during a Dec. 9 preliminary arraignment. The filing is related to the charges stemming from the Altoona Police Department’s investigation. They include felony forgery for allegedly using forged writing, carrying firearms without a license, tampering with identification records, possessing an instrument of crime, and providing false identification to law enforcement.
The defense argues that Mangione’s arrest, which took place at a McDonald’s, involved a series of unlawful actions by the Altoona Police Department. According to the defense’s account, officers were dispatched to the fast-food restaurant after an anonymous tip described a suspicious man resembling a suspect in a New York shooting. However, the officers lacked critical verification of this tip, and before making direct contact with Mangione, they had no independent knowledge of the situation.
According to the defense, once the officers approached him, they allegedly ignored Mangione’s clear indication that he did not want to speak with them, continuing to interrogate him instead. The defense claims that he was illegally detained before being handcuffed and informed of his arrest, violating both his Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights.
The controversial police actions continued as officers searched Mangione’s backpack without a warrant, uncovering items they deemed suspicious, including a clip wrapped in underwear and a package sealed with duct tape that reportedly contained a computer chip. The defense maintains that this search was entirely unconstitutional as it occurred without proper legal justification.
Exhibit list of items seized from Luigi Mangione on Dec. 9, 2024, in a March 12 pretrial motions filing by the defense to the Court of Common Pleas of Blair County, Penn. (Court TV)
After just seven minutes, Mangione was taken into custody for allegedly providing false identification—another claim the defense disputes, asserting that he did not commit such an offense and that the arrest was a direct result of the unlawful actions taken by law enforcement.
Among the evidence the defense seeks to exclude is a red notebook labeled “Manifesto” by the arresting officer.
“The use of this characterization of the Defendant’s alleged personal experiences and writings is incorrect, improper, and without justification and has no probative value. Defendant believes that this characterization was done so solely for the purpose to prejudice the Defendant and put him in a negative light before the public; all in an effort to prejudice any potential jury pool,” the defense filing said.
The latest filing by the defense comes after Mangione’s official defense fund reportedly received its largest contribution yet. A mystery donor gave $36,500, bringing the fund over $722,000, PEOPLE reported.
As the defense prepares for the preliminary hearing, which has been rescheduled for Dec. 19, they aim to argue that these procedural missteps tainted the evidence against Mangione and push for his release on bail, according to the court filing.
Mangione also faces federal charges in New York that could carry the possibility of the death penalty. He is being held in a Brooklyn federal jail alongside several other high-profile defendants, including Sean “Diddy” Combs and Sam Bankman-Fried.
Prosecutors have said the two cases will proceed on parallel tracks. The state charges are expected to go to trial first, and the maximum sentence for them is life in prison without parole.
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