Luigi Mangione has state terrorism charges dropped

Mangione will still be charged with the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, who was gunned down outside a Manhattan hotel in December.

A New York State judge on Tuesday agreed to dismiss two terrorism-related charges against Luigi Mangione, including one that had accused him of first-degree murder.

He will still face trial for murder in the second degree of UnitedHealthcare executive Brian Thompson in December last year.

Mangione is charged with shooting and killing Thompson outside of a hotel in Manhattan, where UnitedHealthcare was holding an investor conference. 

A second-degree murder conviction could result in a prison sentence ranging from 15 years to life, with parole eligibility after 25 years.

In addition to the state charges, Mangione is also facing murder charges in federal court, for which prosecutors can seek the death penalty. 

He pleaded not guilty to both the state and federal charges.

Mangione's next court date at start of December

Judge Gregory Carro said that while the killing was not an ordinary street crime, New York law does not classify something as an act of terrorism just because it is driven by ideology.

"While the defendant was clearly expressing an animus toward UHC, and the health care industry generally, it does not follow that his goal was to 'intimidate and coerce a civilian population,' and indeed, there was no evidence presented of such a goal," Carro said in a written ruling. 

Prosecutors said they would "proceed on the remaining nine counts," which include the second-degree murder and weapons and forgery charges.

Mangione's lawyers claimed that the New York case and a parallel federal prosecution amounted to double jeopardy. Carro dismissed this argument, stating that it was too early to make such a determination.

Mangione has been held in federal custody in Brooklyn since his arrest last year and the judge in the state case scheduled pretrial hearings for December 1.

Edited by: Wesley Rahn