UnitedHealthcare CEO murder suspect Luigi Mangione’s “only viable chance” of success in his murder case is “some type of psychiatric defense,” according to New York-based attorney Daniel Gotlin.
Gotlin, of Gotlin & Jaffe, successfully tried a mental health defense in 2014 while representing a man accused of fatally stabbing his mother.
“My guess is they should try some kind of psychiatric defense where it mitigates his intent to do this in the hopes that instead of getting convicted of murder, he gets convicted of manslaughter,” he told Fox News Digital. “Even if he gets the maximum, which is eight to 24 years … he could still get out. You know, you may spend 15, 16 to 18 years in, but at least one day you’re going to get out.”
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on Tuesday announced that a grand jury indicted Mangione on one count of first-degree murder, in furtherance of terrorism; two counts of second-degree murder; two counts of second-degree criminal weapons possession; four counts of third-degree criminal weapons possession; one count of fourth-degree criminal weapons possession; and one count of second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument.
UnitedHealthcare CEO slaying suspect Luigi Mangione is shown at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pa., on Dec. 9, 2024. (Pennsylvania State Police)
Experts say it’s too early to speculate about a potential defense or plea deal, or even a motive for that matter, despite an alleged manifesto in the suspect’s handwriting.
“Right now is too early to make a decision on pleading him out because he may not have been of sound mind at the time of the shooting,” said Lara Yeretsian, a Los Angeles-based criminal defense attorney who has represented high-profile defendants including Michael Jackson and Scott Peterson. “What untethered thinking could have caused Luigi Mangione to go after an insurance executive? There is nothing to indicate he was denied coverage, and we know he comes from an affluent background, so money was not an issue.”
“Even though he had written a manifesto, the shooting may have been the product of a delusional and unsound mind, a defense his lawyers would have to consider before having him admit guilt,” she added.
