A judge ruled on Thursday that the case is effectively on hold.
Luigi Mangione was arrested in Pennsylvania for the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. His trial is effectively on hold, a judge ruled on Thursday.
Mangione is in custody on federal and state charges in New York, and has refused to appear remotely. The judge said the Pennsylvania case essentially will not move forward until Mangione can appear in person.
Federal officials have not allowed Mangione to be transferred for court appearances in Pennsylvania while his case in New York is ongoing.
The judge gave Mangione and his defense attorneys 14 days to file a formal request for an in-person hearing, or to reconsider appearing remotely.
He was scheduled to appear in a Pennsylvania court on November 7th, but the hearing was cancelled after his defense attorneys asserted his right to appear in person for his court hearings.
The federal government had denied Mangione’s request to appear in Blair County, making him available to attend remotely instead.
The hearing was put on hold and the court must now be updated every 60 days on his ability to appear.
Mangione was arrested on December 9th, 2024 in Altoona, Pennsylvania. His charges include carrying a firearm without a license, forgery, tampering with records or identification, false identification to law enforcement, and possessing instruments of crime.
Additional federal charges include state murder and weapons charges, and could lead to the death penalty. He was accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare’s CEO outside of a hotel in Manhattan last year.
After an extensive manhunt across multiple states, Mangione was recognized by a McDonald’s employee in Altoona.
He has pleaded not guilty, and his defense had the New York state terrorism charges in his case thrown out.
