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EPISODE · Aug 17, 2026 · 24 MIN

Luigi Mangione’s High-Risk Legal Strategy

from The Daily · host The New York Times

In the two years since a masked man shot and killed a health care executive, the national spotlight has turned to the primary suspect, Luigi Mangione. The overwhelming evidence has pointed to his guilt, and the question on most minds has been: What might the defense of one of the most famous murder suspects in America look like? At a hearing on Friday, we got our first glimpse at an answer, one that appears to include a full-throated embrace of his guilt. Today, Benjamin Weiser, a reporter covering the justice system for The New York Times, and Hurubie Meko, a criminal justice reporter for The Times, discuss the risky defense strategy and why an admission of guilt might be Mr. Mangione’s best bet. Guests:  Benjamin Weiser, a reporter covering the justice system for The New York Times. Hurubie Meko, a criminal justice reporter for The New York Times. Background reading: Luigi Mangione pleaded guilty to federal charges, and still faces a state case. Photo: Pool photo by David Dee Delgado For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Aug 17, 2026

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Mr. Mangione pleaded guilty to stalking charges in the killing of Brian Thompson, a health insurance executive, a calculated gamble by his defense team.

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