COURT CALL

Luigi Mangione Judge Hands Down Key Ruling in Case

Mangione’s lawyers argued that law enforcement unlawfully searched him without a warrant during his arrest.

The judge overseeing Luigi Mangione’s trial ruled Monday that prosecutors can introduce the gun and notebook found in his possession as evidence in the murder case over the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Gregory Carro ruled that Altoona, Pa. cops followed appropriate legal protocol when searching the alleged killer’s bag at a police station following his arrest in December 2024. Mangione’s lawyers argued police unlawfully searched his backpack when they arrested him at a McDonald’s. Prosecutors countered that officers were following standard procedure after Mangione allegedly gave a false name. The judge sided with the defense, calling it an “improper warrantless search,” and ruled that most of the backpack’s contents, including a gun magazine, a cellphone, a passport, a wallet, and a computer chip, cannot be used at the trial. However, prosecutors can use the gun and notebook since they were found later during the police’s search of the backpack at the police station.