Pam Bondi pushes death penalty for UnitedHealthcare CEO murder suspect

Attorney General Pam Bondi instructed federal attorneys to seek the death penalty when prosecuting the alleged murderer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, Luigi Mangione, according to a Tuesday release from the Department of Justice. Mangione faces both federal and state murder charges for allegedly shooting and killing Thompson on a New York City sidewalk early last December.

The DOJ alleges that Mangione stalked and murdered Thompson in an act of political violence. Thompson was an innocent man, and the premeditated and cold-blooded nature of his murder shocked the nation, according to Bondi. This directive will help carry out President Donald Trump’s fight against violent crime to make America safer, she added.

How has Mangione responded to the charges? The 26-year-old’s attorney, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, described the DOJ’s push for the death penalty as barbaric. Imposing the death penalty on Mangione would oppose recommendations by federal prosecutors and legal precedent, she said. Agnifilo alleged that the DOJ’s move defended what she described as a broken and immoral healthcare industry.

Dig deeper: Read my reports on Mangione’s arrest and initial charges for more background on the case.