Luigi Mangione reportedly did not have family present in the courtroom, but emotional women waited in 11-degree weather to support him

Luigi Mangione appeared in a Manhattan criminal court on December 23, 2024, and pleaded not guilty to state and murder terror charges concerning the death of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. According to a report by ABC News dated December 24, 2024, Mangione did not seem to have any relatives in the courtroom to show him support. However, approximately two dozen women, among others, attended his arraingment in the public section of the gallery, displaying their support for him.

The publication mentioned that people waited in the 11-degree weather to support Mangione as they raised concerns about personal healthcare issues. One of the women who claimed to have arrived at the courthouse at 5 a.m, told ABC News:

"This is a grave injustice, and that's why people are here,"

Another woman from Brooklyn, told the news portal that she came to the courthouse as she didn't trust the media coverage on Mangione's case and wanted to see the proceedings by herself before drawing conclusions. The woman told ABC News:

"There was a lot of support from where we were in the back [of court]. I believe it's a conversation that a lot of people are having now, and whatever we can do to help progress this conversation is worthy of participating in."

Additionally, protestors rallied for the accused outside the court chanting ""Free, free Luigi", "Eat the rich," and "Hey, hey, ho, ho, these CEOs have got to go,".

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"He is being treated like a human ping-pong ball"- Luigi Mangione's attorney comments on state and federal charges in recent hearing

According to a report by BBC dated December 23, 2024, Luigi Mangione's lawyer, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, said during a court appearance last week that the two sets of federal charges of using a firearm to commit murder and interstate stalking resulting in death, appear to conflict with the state charges.

While the state charges accuse Mangione of intimidating or coercing a civilian population, the federal charges target crimes against an individual. Agnifilo called the overlaping charges "highly unusual" and "confusing". She also added that she hadn't seen anything like what was happenign in Mangione's case, in 30 years of practising law.

According to the publication, during Mangione's hearing on December 23, 2024, Agnifilo told the judge that she was concerned about her client's right to a fair trial owing to statements from government officials like New York's mayor Eric Adams. Commenting on the same, Agnifilo said:

"This is a young man. He is being treated like a human ping-pong ball between two warring jurisdictions here."

Luigi Mangione's attorney accused federal and state authorities of treating her client like a "spectacle" and "political fodder" by bringing Mangione to New York by a helicopter as he was surrounded by armed guards and officials in front of journalists and cameras.

However, after hearing Agnifilo's concerns, judge Gregory Carro said that while he is unable to control whatever happens outside the court, he vowed that Luigi Mangione would get a fair trial.

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According to a report by AP News dated December 24, 2024, the federal charges against Luigi Mangione carry the possiblity of a death penalty while he could face the maximum sentence of life in prison without parole for the state charges.

Additionally, prosecutors mentioned that the two cases will be conducted parallely and the state charges are expected to go to trial first.