Mangione Back in Court Weeks Before New York Murder Trial

Luigi Mangione appeared in a New York courtroom Tuesday for what could be the last hearing before his state murder trial begins next month.

Mangione, 28, has pleaded not guilty to several state charges in connection with the December 2024 fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside the New York Midtown Hilton. Jury selection is set to begin Sept. 8, and Justice Gregory Carro was expected to determine jury-selection logistics at Tuesday's hearing — a task that could prove challenging given the notoriety of the case. If convicted, Mangione faces up to life in prison.

Mangione entered the courtroom from a holding area wearing a grey suit, glanced around the room and took his seat next to his attorneys, Karen Friedman-Agnifilo, Marc Agnifilo and Jacob Kaplan. The courtroom was filled with journalists and some of his supporters wearing green, an apparent reference to the Luigi character from Nintendo's Mario games and the movies that followed.

The case has drawn international attention, and mostly female supporters have turned out for pre-trial hearings, arguing that his actions were justified.

Prosecutors allege Mangione was motivated by animus toward the health insurance industry, though he was never a UnitedHealthcare customer and had no connection to Thompson, a father of two from Minnesota. Prosecutors say Mangione trailed Thompson and tracked his movements in New York, where the executive was attending his company's investors conference, then shot him from behind outside the hotel and fled the city. He was apprehended several days later in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after a McDonald's employee called the police.

Rebecca Roiphe, a former Manhattan prosecutor who now teaches criminal law and ethics at New York Law School, told NBC News that prosecutors will likely scrutinize potential jurors' experiences with the health care system.

"I think the prosecution is clearly going to want to keep off people who have some kind of axe to grind about health care," Roiphe said. She believes the defense will seek panelists with a "healthcare for all mindset."

Mangione separately faces federal stalking-related charges in New York and has also pleaded not guilty. The Justice Department had sought the death penalty in that case, but U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett issued a ruling in January that effectively blocks federal prosecutors from pursuing a capital case.