Luigi Mangione federal guilty plea expected to be announced Friday, sources say: What to know ahead of court
Luigi Mangione's state trial is just weeks away, set to begin on Sept. 8.
It's expected that a guilty plea will be announced in connection with the federal prosecution of Luigi Mangione during a conference scheduled for federal court Friday, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
The sources caution that plans for the guilty plea are not final at this point and will not be official until announced at the hearing, which is set for 11 a.m. Friday. The situation is fluid and Mangione could conceivably decide against pleading guilty between now and Friday.
Neither the prosecution nor defense teams are commenting on the situation.
The possibility of a plea deal in the federal prosecution could reignite efforts to convince a Manhattan judge to dismiss the New York state murder charges Mangione is simultaneously facing.
If Mangione were to plead guilty in his federal case, his lawyers could seek legal refuge behind New York state's protections against so-called "double jeopardy," legal experts told ABC News. It is an open question as to whether that effort could succeed.
"One-plus-one is two. Double jeopardy, by any common-sense definition," Mangione shouted during a February court appearance when his state trial was scheduled to begin before his federal case.
The cases and charges
Mangione is accused of gunning down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on Dec. 4, 2024, in Midtown Manhattan, and Mangione was captured in Pennsylvania after a five-day manhunt. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced that Mangione was indicted on first-degree murder charges on Dec. 17, 2024, and federal prosecutors announced separate charges of stalking and murder on Dec. 19, 2024.
Mangione pleaded not guilty in the separate state and federal cases.
The charges in both cases have narrowed over the last year. U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett in January threw out the federal murder and firearm charges, which would have made the death penalty an option if convicted. Judge Gregory Carro last September dismissed the first-degree murder and terrorism charges in the state case.
He's currently charged in the federal case with two counts: stalking - travel in interstate commerce and stalking - use of interstate facilities.
In the state case, he's charged with murder in the second-degree, criminal possession of a forged instrument in the second-degree, and multiple counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the second-degree, third-degree and fourth-degree.
If Mangione ends up pleading guilty to federal charges, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office has said it's prepared to lobby the federal judge presiding over the case for a stiff sentence.
Timing of state and federal cases
Friday's federal court appearance comes as Mangione prepares for his state trial, set to begin on Sept. 8. Carro, the state judge, insisted that state prosecutors go first, arguing they have "primary jurisdiction" over the matter and the support of Thompson's family. The federal trial is currently scheduled for Jan. 5, 2027.
If Mangione were to strike a deal with federal prosecutors, it remains to be seen whether Garnett would accept it and what, if anything, she would say about the state case.
If Garnett were to accept the federal deal, defense lawyers could ask the judge overseeing the state case to throw out the matter entirely, or at least delay the trial while they file motions to seek a dismissal.
If Carro refuses to delay, Mangione's lawyers could appeal to New York's mid-level court -- the Appellate Division's First Department -- or even higher, to the New York Court of Appeals.
What about double jeopardy?
The possibility of a federal plea deal could reignite the defense's efforts to convince a judge to dismiss the state murder charges, arguing double jeopardy.
The Constitution protects defendants from being prosecuted for the same crime twice, but Mangione's dueling state and federal cases fall into one of the exceptions for double jeopardy. The federal government and the state of New York are considered "separate sovereigns," and each can prosecute the same person for the same acts as if they are different crimes, under the Constitution.
"He's right that he's being tried twice for one shooting, and he's wrong that the Constitution cares," said ABC News legal contributor James Sample.
However, New York State has an additional law that provides more protections against double jeopardy than either the federal system or most states, including barring a second prosecution if the separate allegations are "based upon the same act."
"If he pleads in the federal case, at least he's got this argument under New York State law that it's double jeopardy," said Dan Abrams, ABC News' chief legal analyst. Abrams cautioned that state prosecutors will likely object and press the judge to proceed with the murder trial in state court because the charges in both cases are different.
Mangione's attorneys have repeatedly raised the double jeopardy argument, but their efforts have so far been unsuccessful in stopping the state trial. In a ruling last year, Judge Carro, who oversees the state case, determined that Mangione's double jeopardy argument was "premature" because the federal case was not resolved. But Carro did signal that defense lawyers could raise the issue if Mangione struck a plea deal prior to the state trial.
"While it is true that [New York's double jeopardy law] grants greater protection than that of the state or federal constitution, that bar is triggered only when a prior prosecution ends in a conviction by guilty plea, or once a jury has been sworn. Therefore, because neither event has occurred, defendant's motion is premature," Carro wrote in a September 2025 ruling.
State prosecutors could attempt to argue that the charges in the state case -- including second-degree murder -- are different from the federal stalking charges, so the double jeopardy protections should not apply.
"If the elements were the same between the federal charges and the state charges, that might be a problem, but these elements are not the same," noted Bennett Gershman, a professor at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University. "I think you've got a clear distinction in terms of the charges, and that's important for double jeopardy."
According to Ian Weinstein, a defense lawyer and professor at Fordham School of Law, the specific charges at issue will determine the success of a double jeopardy argument.
"Until we know the specific federal charges to which he pleads guilty, it's hard to have an informed [opinion] whether or to what extent it might curtail or bar the state prosecution," he said.
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