E-bike reform signalled after rider killed in Sydney; Luigi Mangione returns to court

Luigi Mangione showed no emotion in court as prosecutors played surveillance video showing the slaying of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on a New York City sidewalk last year and Mangione’s arrest at a McDonald’s in Pennsylvania five days later.

The videos, which also included footage of the restaurant not previously seen by the press or the public, kicked off the hearing of Mangione’s fight to suppress evidence from the state murder case, including the gun that prosecutors say matches the gun used in the Dec. 4, 2024 attack. Thompson was killed while walking to a Manhattan hotel for his company’s annual investor conference.

Mangione, 27, pressed his finger to his lips and his thumb to his chin as he watched footage of two police officers approaching him while he was eating breakfast at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, about 370 kilometers west of Manhattan.

Prosecutors said a McDonald’s manager was holding a pen in his right hand, occasionally punching him, as he called 911 and cited concerns from customers that Mangione resembled the suspect in Thompson’s killing.

Evidence that Mangione’s defense team wants excluded includes a 9mm handgun and a notebook, a so-called manifesto that prosecutors say described Mangione’s intention to “escape” a health insurance executive. Both were found in Mangione’s backpack, which he had with him when he was arrested.

Mangione’s attorneys argue that the Manhattan district attorney’s office should have been prevented from showing the gun, notebook and other items to jurors because police did not have a search warrant.

Mangione, the Ivy League-educated scion of a wealthy Maryland family, has pleaded not guilty to state and federal murder charges. The state charges carry the possibility of life in prison, while federal prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.

No hearings have been scheduled yet. The next hearing in the federal case is scheduled for January 9.

access point