Luigi Mangione latest: Top New York attorney tapped by CEO murder suspect as ‘defense fund’ donations mount
Karen Friedman Agnifilo to represent suspect as he faces second-degree murder charge while donations pour into GiveSendGo fundraiser
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A top New York City attorney has been hired to represent Luigi Mangione in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEOBrian Thompson.
Karen Friedman Agnifilo will be representing Mangione in New York. The suspect is also facing charges in Pennsylvania and is currently fighting extradition to New York, CNN reported. Police sources believe Mangione took a train to Pennsylvania, where he was captured on Monday.
Agnifilo has worked in private practice since 2021 and has experience in New York City’s criminal justice system. She spent seven years as the chief assistant district attorney in the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
Mangione’s supporters are donating thousands of dollars for “defense funds” that have been established for him. Amid fears the shooting suspect is being turned into a martyr, several fundraisers have been set up for him online, with one created by anonymous group ‘The December 4th Legal Committee’ surpassing more than $100,000 in donations on the crowdfunding website GiveSendGo by Sunday.
The group’s name is an apparent reference to the day the 26-year-old allegedly gunned down Mr Thompson in Midtown Manhattan.
Other campaigns soliciting donations for Mangione’s defense have been taken down by sites, such as GoFundMe, reported ABC News.
Public donations for suspected CEO killer Luigi Mangione’s ‘defence fund’ surpass $100,000- Why is Luigi Mangione only facing second-degree murder over UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting?
Who is Luigi Mangione: What to know about man charged with murder in UnitedHealthcare CEO’s shooting death
Who is Karen Friedman Agnifilo? Top New York attorney Luigi Mangione retained for legal defence
The alleged UnitedHealthcare shooter suffered from chronic pain. It’s a problem plaguing more than a third of Americans
AOC: ‘Denied health insurance claims like act of violence’
New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has spoken out about the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO, Brian Thompson.
The congresswoman condemned the violence that took place in Midtown Manhattan on December 4, but says that those who had been denied health insurance claims may be interpreted as an “act of violence” against them.
Speaking to CBS News journalist Jaala Brown on Thursday, the Democrat said: “I think that this collective American experience [of healthcare], which is so twisted to have in the wealthiest nation in the world, all of that pain that people have experienced is being concentrated on this event. And it’s really important that we take a step back.
“This is not to comment and this is not to say that an act of violence is justified, but I think for anyone who is confused or shocked or appalled, they need to understand that people interpret and feel and experience denied claims as an act of violence against them.”
Mangione allegedly suffered from chronic pain. It’s a problem plaguing more than a third of Americans
Luigi Mangione, the alleged perpetrator in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, reportedly suffered from chronic back pain.
Posts on the content-sharing platform Reddit under the now-defunct username “Mister_Cactus” appeared to reference the 26-year-old’s extensive health problems. The user referred to “spondy,” which is commonly known as spondylolisthesis.
Spondylolisthesis is a condition caused by a vertebra slipping out of place and putting pressure on the bones below. While it commonly occurs in older adults due to a type of arthritis, a common disease that causes joint inflammation and stiffness, it can also be brought on by trauma, spinal destabilization, bone disease, or a birth defect.
Julia Musto has the full story.
Luigi Mangione suffered from chronic pain. It’s plagues a third of Americans
Chronic pain originates from various sources and is defined as any pain persisting beyond 3 months
Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg suggests Mangione could stop trying to fight extradition
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg believes the accused killer could waive his right to fight extradition, CNN is reporting.
“Indications are that the defendant may waive, but that waiver is not complete until a court proceeding, which my understanding from court officials in Pennsylvania cannot happen until Tuesday,” Bragg reportedly said. “So until that time, we’re going to continue to press forward on parallel paths and we’ll be ready whether he is going to waive extradition or whether he’s going to contest extradition.”
‘Free Luigi’ poster hangs outside Brian Thompson’s murder scene
Life inside Luigi Mangione’s maximum security prison
Luigi Mangione is being held under maximum security conditions at the State Correctional Institution Huntingdon in Pennsylvania, according to correction officials.
Mangione, 26, does not get to interact with any other inmates and is in a cell by himself, however, he is not in solitary confinement, officials told CBS News. They said that he has not yet had outside time, before adding that he will eventually.
He has not been violent and is not under suicide watch or any psychological order, the officials said.
Mangione’s fellow prison inmates have called for his release claiming his “conditions suck”. The outlet spoke exclusively to those incarcerated along with the shooting suspect at his prison.
Mangione doesn’t have a TV in his cell and is forced to eat the prison’s “terrible” food, which includes fruit, grits, scrambled eggs and “porcupine meatballs” for lunch – which are actually made from beef, according to the NewsNation.
“Luigi’s conditions suck,” inmates shouted to correspondent Alex Caprariello from their cells in a segment aired on Thursday. “Free Luigi.”
Joe Rogan discusses public reaction to Brian Thompson’s murder: ‘It’s a dirty, dirty business’
Joe Rogan chalked up the country’s mixed reactions to the fatal shooting of the UnitedHealthcare CEO to the “dirty business” of health insurance.
Rogan and his guests, filmmakers Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary, discussed the December 4 death of Brian Thompson on a Midtown Manhattan street on Tuesday’s episode of the mega-popular Joe Rogan Experience podcast.
The podcaster and his guests predicted there wouldn’t be much sympathy for the 50-year-old insurance executive due to the state of health insurance in the US.
“I don’t think anybody is going to be crying too hard over” Thompson’s death, Avary said.
“Maybe his family, but that’s about it,” Rogan replied. “It’s a dirty, dirty business. The business of insurance is f***ing gross. It’s gross, especially healthcare insurance.”
Read the full story.
Joe Rogan discusses reaction to Brian Thompson’s murder: ‘It’s a dirty business’
‘I don’t think anybody is going to be crying too hard over’ Thompson’s death, Roger Avary said on Rogan’s Tuesday show
WATCH: McDonald’s tightens security at Pennsylvania restaurant where Mangione was arrested
Luigi Mangione reportedly eating porcupine meatballs in jail
Mangione’s prison menu includes fruit, grits, scrambled eggs and “porcupine meatballs”—a dish made from ground beef and rice—for lunch, according to NewsNation. The menu went viral earlier this week. The outlet reported that the inmates inside the jail have complained about their conditions, including the food at the facility.
Anchor interviews inmates at Mangione’s jail
A TV anchor managed to interview men at the alleged shooter’s jail as they watched her program from their cells.
Mangione is at a state correctional facility in Huntingdon. The prisoners there complained about their living conditions and meals by screaming yes or no to the anchor’s questions.
Watch the interaction here:
Timeline of the manhunt
December 4: The suspect set off from an Upper West Side hostel before dawn. He was seen on surveillance video walking back and forth at 54th Street and Sixth Avenue, near the Hilton Hotel where the UnitedHealthcare Group was holding its conference. After opening fire, the suspect fled by bike through Central Park before getting into a cab and was later spotted at a bus station. A manhunt ensued.
December 5: Investigators revealed a cryptic message carved onto the shell casings: “delay,” “deny” and “depose.” NYPD also released images of the suspect.
December 6: Police announce they believe the suspect has left New York City, expanding the desperate search. A backpack, thought to belong to the suspect, was found in Central Park and sent in for forensic testing. The now-viral “flirtatious” photo of the suspect speaking to a hostel worker was released.
December 7: NYPD releases another photo of the suspect, this time in the back of a taxi. The FBI also joined the hunt for the suspect, offering a $50,000 reward for information.
December 8: Although no leads on the suspect’s whereabouts were made public, investigators revealed the contents of the backpack included Monopoly money and a Tommy Hilfiger jacket.
December 9: A private service for Brian Thompson was held. Also that day, a McDonald’s employee in Altoona, Pennsylvania tipped recognized Mangione from the photos circulated by police. He was arrested in Pennsylvania on gun charges and hours later faced a murder charge in New York.