Judge warns Trump DOJ 'may have violated' fair trial rule, could remove death penalty in Luigi Mangione case

A judge warned in an order filed Wednesday that Trump administration employees "may have violated" local trial rules in their social media posts about the Luigi Mangione case, in which Mangione has been charged with murdering United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Judge Margaret Garnett said that the statements would be taken into consideration when she decides on the death penalty motion filed.

The order stated, "On September 23, 2025, the defendant filed a letter advising the Court of various public statements made about this case by various members of the government. It appears from this letter that multiple employees at the Department of Justice may have violated Local Criminal Rule 23.1, and this Court’s order of April 25, 2025 specifically identifying the strictures of this rule for counsel and directing the prosecution team to ensure that the highest levels of the Department of Justice, up to and including Attorney General Bondi, were aware of and understood they were bound by this rule. 

Local Criminal Rule 23.1(a) states, "it is the duty of the lawyer or law firm, and of non-lawyer personnel employed by a lawyer’s office or subject to a lawyer’s supervision, … not to release or authorize the release of … opinion that a reasonable person would expect to be disseminated by means of public communication, in connection with pending … criminal litigation with which they are associated, if there is a substantial likelihood that the dissemination will interfere with a fair trial or otherwise prejudice the due administration of justice."

The rule later stated, the judge wrote, "'any opinion as to the accused’s guilt or innocence or as to the merits of the case or the evidence in the case’ is a matter that 'presumptively involve[s]' such a substantial likelihood. 

The judge said that the statements referenced in the letter made by two high-ranking staff members of the DOJ "appear to be in direct violation of this Rule and the Court’s April 25 Order." 

The September 23 letter noted that Deputy Director of the Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs Chad Gilmartin reposted a video of Trump saying during an interview with Fox News that Mangione "shot someone in the back as clear as you’re looking at me … he shot him right in the middle of the back — instantly dead." Gilmartin wrote in his post, "@POTUS is absolutely right." The post was deleted. Before it was deleted, the Chief of Staff and Associate Deputy Attorney General for the Deputy Attorney General Brian Nieves retweeted it. 

The letter also referred to statements made by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, in which she referred to Mangione as a "left wing assassin [who shot United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson right in the back in New York City" during a White House press briefing, as well as comments from White House deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Stephen Miller, in which he said, "of course the healthcare CEO was brutally gunned down by another self-described so-called anti-fascist that was then celebrated by other self-described anti-fascists, so of course, really community revolutionaries." 

The letter stated, "The Government has indelibly prejudiced Mr. Mangione by baselessly linking him to unrelated violent events, and left-wing extremist groups, despite there being no connection or affiliation. A recent, tragic, high-profile murder has only increased this prejudicial rhetoric. The attempts to connect Mr. Mangione with these incidents and paint him as a 'left-wing' violent extremist are false, prejudicial, and part of a greater political narrative that has no place in any criminal case, especially one where the death penalty is at stake. Mr. Mangione in fact does not support these violent actions, does not condone past or future political violence, nor is he in any way aligned with the group mentioned in the White House press release."

The DOJ has been ordered to respond by October 3 explaining "how these violations occurred despite the Court’s April 25 Order and what steps are being taken to ensure that no future violations occur." Future violations could result in sanctions, contempt of court findings, or other relief. 

"This Court will consider the other statements referenced in the September 23 Letter in connection with the Defendant’s death penalty motion filed on September 19, 2025 and the Government may include any response to those statements in its opposition to the death penalty motion on the schedule previously set by the Court."