LAUREN TAYLOR: Law enforcement officials extradited Luigi Mangione, the suspect in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, to New York Thursday.

Mangione heard as a judge read out four federal charges against him, including murder with a firearm, an offense punishable by the death penalty.

It followed Mangione’s move from Pennsylvania, where he was arrested and has been held since his arrest last week, to New York.

Armed guards surrounded Mangione as NYPD officers walked him off a helicopter upon his arrival in Manhattan. New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who like Mangione, faces a federal indictment, albeit on corruption charges, joined in the walk.

Mayor Eric Adams / D – New York City: Police Commissioner Tisch and I all want to send a very clear and loud message that this act of terrorism and the violence that stems from it is something that will not be tolerated in this city.

LAUREN TAYLOR: Mangione already faces state-level charges in New York. Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg brought charges Tuesday against Mangione, including for murder as an act of terrorism.

But Mangione also received a hero’s welcome from some protesters outside the federal courthouse.

The killing of the 50-year-old Thompson sparked backlash against the health insurance industry and their limitations on and denials of coverage to patients.

While no dates have been set, Mangione will face state-level charges first, before then proceeding to his federal trial.

New York abolished the death penalty, meaning it’s not an option for Mangione in the state-level case. But with the federal government has not abolished it yet, so if convicted in the federal trial, the death penalty *would* be an option.

For Straight Arrow News, I’m Lauren Taylor.

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