Accused killer Luigi Mangione sparked a circus in Manhattan court — appearing in a bulletproof vest before a crowd of twisted young female admirers — as a judge denied his attempt to delay his murder case Friday.
The 26-year-old alleged assassin of UnitedHealthCare CEO Brian Thompson wore a black vest over a green cableknit sweater — his arms and legs shackled together — as his lawyer tried in vain to delay the case while federal prosecutors separately weigh whether to pursue the death penalty against him.
“They’re still deciding whether to seek the death penalty of Mr. Mangione,”attorney Karen Friedman Agnifilo said. “That’s where our focus is.”
Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Gregory Carro rejected Agnifilo’s request to push off the filing of motions in the case. He set a deadline of April 9 for the defense to file its court papers, with the District Attorney’s Office getting until April 14 to respond.
The hearing unfolded in front of a courthouse gallery overwhelmingly filled with female supporters of Mangione.
Eighteen members of the public made it inside the 15th-floor Manhattan courtroom. Dozens more, again mostly women, crowded the hallway outside — with some donning the same maroon color Mangione wore when he was arraigned on murder charges in the disturbing case.
Outside, several dozen demonstrators rallied near the courthouse steps, some calling the accused killer a righteous crusader against America’s corrupt healthcare system.
“It’s time the corporations realize people can f—k them over like they f–k us over,” said Jabeze Pujols, a 21-year-old New York University student from Brooklyn.
“It’s sad it took violence, but [the murder] got people to open their eyes and started a conversation,” Pujols added. “He shined a light on the health insurance industry. I want to see him found not guilty.”
Several loud roars from the pro-Mangione rally were audible in the courtroom during the 15-minute hearing.
Mangione — an Ivy League graduate from a prominent Maryland real estate family — is accused of ambushing the healthcare boss on Dec. 4 outside a Manhattan hotel before leading authorities on a five-day manhunt.
The killing was caught on camera, and Mangione was carrying the same 3-D-printed handgun used to kill Thompson in his backpack when cops nabbed him at a Pennsylvania McDonald’s, prosecutors say.
Yet since his arrest, scores of warped fans have glorified the alleged murderer — with some dubbing him a modern-day hero — because they see him as a warrior against America’s healthcare system.
Among the crowd of Mangione supporters Friday was notorious military intelligence leaker Chelsea Manning, who was sentenced to 35 years for sending US military secrets to WikiLeaks before having her sentence commuted by President Obama.
Others tried to cash in on the circus-like spectacle outside the courthouse — including a blockchain business that flashed a massive digital image depicting Mangione as a saint on a truck.
The rolling billboard advertised a “$LUIGI blockchain token“ for a “decentralized healthcare system,” proclaiming, “It takes guts to put everything on the line” and “Corporate greed won’t stop. Neither will we.”
During the hearing, Agnifilo slammed Mayor Eric Adams — who infamously attended Mangione’s “perp walk” when he was brought to New York City — and a top NYPD official for appearing on an HBO documentary to improperly discuss the case.
“I wanted to bring to your honor’s attention…my shock, frankly, that the Chief of Detectives of the NYPD, along with the New York City mayor, had time to sit down with HBO, and put hair and make-up on, and provide information about the arrest, the prosecution, their theory of the case and evidence of Mr. Mangione that we haven’t even received,” she fumed.
Agnifilo also whined about Mangione’s shackles, calling it overkill for a man she claimed was a “model prisoner” at his Brooklyn lockup.
“There’s no reason for him to be this way in court, with all these officers standing here,” she said.
“For security reasons, they would prefer him to remain cuffed,” the judge replied, after conferring with a court officer in the room.
As court officers escorted him out of the room, Mangione shot a look in the direction of his group of supporters. Several of them beamed.
Mangione, who has pleaded not guilty, is being held at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center alongside the likes of Sean “Diddy” Combs.
He faces a possible sentence of life in prison without parole if convicted of murder “as an act of terrorism” in the state case.
— Additional reporting by Jack Morphet
