Gerrard Kaonga
Luigi Mangione is accused of shooting and killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson last year.
Luigi Mangione’s legal team has taken issue with the way in which the authorities recovered his DNA as he faces charges for allegedly shooting CEO Brian Thompson.
As well as this, his lawyers have claimed that Mangione had his rights violated by Altoona police when he was confronted at a McDonald’s in Pennsylvania.
Mangione has pleaded not guilty to murder and the terrorism charges he faces.
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Mangione’s lawyer Thomas Dickey has recently made a court filing and said police had ‘no objective grounds’ to detain the 26-year-old ‘other than a hunch and/or unparticularized suspicion’.
At this point in the investigation into the shooting of Thompson, police had publicized images of an individual they wished to speak to in connection with the crime.
Officers became alerted to Mangione’s presence at the fast-food restaurant after a staff member called 911 and said they had seen a ‘suspicious male that resembled the suspect who shot the CEO in New York’.
Mangione’s legal team said they didn’t have ‘independent corroborating evidence that [Mangione] was in fact the suspect sought in New York, prior to, or at the time of their stop and/or the investigatory detention’.
They have added that his initial detention was unconstitutional and geared to ‘restrict and totally curtail his liberty’.
His legal team is also alleging that Mangione was tricked into giving police his DNA when he was in their custody.
In the new court documents, Mangione’s lawyers have said police gave him soda and snacks in order to collect his DNA. His lawyers have gone as far to say that the DNA samples are ‘poisonous fruits’ obtained from an illegal search.
They have said his DNA was falsely obtained, that police violated his rights in collecting it, and are arguing as a result that the DNA evidence can't be deemed admissible in court.
Since being taken into police custody after a five-day manhunt, Mangione has amassed an online following, with many taking to social media to show their support for the suspect.
Last month, Mangione’s team revealed a statement that he had penned to those who have shown him support.
It read: "I am overwhelmed by - and grateful for - everyone who has written me to share their stories and express their support.
"Powerfully, this support has transcended political, racial, and even class divisions, as mail has flooded MDC from across the country, and around the globe.
"While it is impossible for me to reply to most letters, please know that I read every one that I receive. Thank you again to everyone who took the time to write. I look forward to hearing more in the future."