Mangione to press mental-health defense in NY murder trial

Luigi Mangione’s defense plans to use New York’s extreme emotional disturbance psychiatric defense in his state murder case over the 2024 shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. If the defense proves he acted under a mental-health episode, the charge could be reduced from murder to manslaughter. A judge ordered prosecutors and the defense to share details of the EED strategy by Thursday as a September trial approaches; prosecutors also moved to drop a weapons count. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to state murder and weapons charges and faces federal stalking charges. Experts say the EED defense is challenging but could be Mangione’s best shot given the strength of the evidence against him.