BURSTThomas Dickey, who is representing Luigi Mangione, said he hasn’t seen “any evidence” that his client is guilty of being the suspect in the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson last week.
“I don’t want people to jump to these pre-judgment things, because nobody would ever want that if they were accused or their loved ones were accused,” Dickey told NewsNation’s "Cuomo" on Tuesday evening.
He added that in the hearing Tuesday, he had not "seen any evidence yet" that would implicate Mangione.
“I don’t even know if this is him or whatever,” Dickey said. “So, we’re going to test those waters and give the government a chance to bring some evidence forward.”
Mangione was arrested and charged Monday in connection to the murder of the healthcare executive. Thompson was shot and killed in Manhattan last week, and a manhunt ensued looking for the masked suspect.
The University of Pennsylvania graduate was taken into custody as a person of interest at a McDonald’s roughly two hours outside of Pittsburgh after an employee tipped off law enforcement. Mangione, 26, was carrying a ghost gun, silencer and a fake New Jersey ID card with a name on it consistent with the one the suspect used to check into a New York hostel on Nov. 24.
In Pennsylvania, he was charged with five crimes, unrelated to the shooting. They included forgery, carrying a firearm without a license, tampering with records or identification, possessing instruments of a crime and false identification to law enforcement.
Prosecutors indicate they expect Mangione will face a homicide charge in New York. With an arrest warrant underway, authorities sought to extradite the suspect back to Manhattan, which Dickey said they will oppose.
According to the New York Police Department, Mangione authored a three-page document that expressed “some ill will” toward corporate America.
In his Tuesday interview, Dickey maintained that no evidence has been brought that suggests his client was connected to the shooting. He also noted that the gun found on Mangione in the McDonald’s has not yet been definitively matched to the one used to kill Thompson.
Earlier Tuesday, a judge denied Mangione bail. Dickey argued his client it “entitled to bail” under Pennsylvania law and the judge “should have set bail.”
Before the hearing Tuesday, Mangione shouted at the press outside the courthouse, yelling out the phrases, "completely out of touch" and "an insult to the intelligence of the American people."
Dickey also noted that he has met with Mangione and intends to “develop a relationship” and bond with his client.
“He seemed to understand my questions. He seemed to be able to interact with me, and so I was pleased with that,” he told the host.
Dickey was asked at a press conference earlier Tuesday about Mangione’s mood, to which he replied telling people to use their “common sense” about how it would feel to be accused of such a crime.
The attorney also joined CNN's Kaitlan Collins, where he refused to say who was paying for his employment in the case. He did acknowledge, however, that people were reaching out to offer to pay Mangione's legal bills.
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