ALTOONA, Pennsylvania (WABC) — Luigi Mangione’s attempt to suppress the contents of his backpack and certain statements he made to police should be rejected because the officers in Pennsylvania acted “reasonably” when the accused murderer unexpectedly showed up in their jurisdiction, prosecutors said Monday in a new court filing.
Mangione, who has pleaded not guilty to state and federal charges over the shooting death of Brian Thompson, is scheduled to stand trial in June in the New York State Supreme Court.
During a three-week hearing last year, defense attorneys argued the alleged murder weapon, writings and other items seized from Mangione’s backpack following his arrest in Altoona, PA, should be excluded because the search violated the Constitution.
The Manhattan district attorney’s office said the Altoona police officers acted “in deliberate and painstaking fashion” when they arrested Mangione in a McDonald’s and complied with Pennsylvania search-and-seizure law.
“At every step, the Altoona officers responded to this unexpected and alarming situation reasonably,” assistant district attorney Joel Seidemann wrote. He added that even if there was a problem with the search, “Altoona officers obtained a search warrant for the backpack, thereby establishing an independent source for recovering the backpack’s contents.”
Judge Gregory Carro said he expects to issue a decision on the evidence by May 18.
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