Luigi Mangione is due in Manhattan court Tuesday for a hearing over whether jurors will be allowed to see his diary — where the Ivy League grad allegedly plotted murdering a healthcare exec.
Mangione, 27, wants to block prosecutors from bringing up his notebook — where he purportedly mused about killing “greedy” UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson to draw attention to an industry that “extracts human life force for money” — when he goes on trial for the Dec. 4, 2024 assassination in Midtown.
Cops in Altoona, Pa., discovered the red notebook, a partially 3D-printed pistol, zip ties and rolls of duct tape inside the privileged anti-capitalist’s backpack when he was nabbed after a five-day manhunt.
The suspect’s lawyers have lobbied to “suppress” the contents of the bag from being shown at trial, arguing that the Pennsylvania cops breached Mangione’s constitutional rights by searching him before getting a warrant.
But the Manhattan DA’s Office says it has the right to show jurors the screeds of a man they accuse of carrying out the twisted “act of terrorism” by executing the father of two in broad daylight on the day of UnitedHealthcare’s investor conference.
In an Oct. 22 entry, Mangione –– who grew up in a wealthy well-known Baltimore family — allegedly fantasized about the news coverage that such a murder would receive.
“The point is made in the news headline Insurance CEO killed at annual investors conference,” the University of Pennsylvania grad allegedly wrote. “It conveys a greedy bastard that had it coming.”
Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Gregory Carro could also set a trial date Tuesday in the closely watched case.
Mangione’s camp has asked the judge to pause the state’s case, prosecuted by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, until Mangione goes to trial in a separate federal murder case that carries a possible death penalty.
The question of whether Mangione will use a psychological defense — a legal gambit that could reduce his time in prison — could come up during Tuesday’s hearing as well.
The Manhattan DA’s office accused Mangione’s lawyers earlier this month of blowing through a deadline to reveal whether they will use the tactic.
Mangione — who has been known to praise Unabomber’’ Ted Kaczynski — maintains that showing his cards to the Manhattan DA at this point would “compromise” his defense in the federal case.
Tuesday’s hearing is set to start at around 9:30 a.m. in Manhattan Supreme Court at 100 Centre St.
Mangione has pleaded not guilty to murder as an act of terrorism, a charge that carries a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
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