Luigi Mangione is escorted into Manhattan state court in New York, Sept. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, file)2025-12-01T05:06:14Z NEW YORK (AP) As the first anniversary of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompsons killing looms this week, the man charged in his death will be in court fighting to prevent prosecutors from using evidence they say links him to the crime.Luigi Mangione, 27, is set for hearings starting Monday on his bid to block the Manhattan District Attorneys Office from showing or telling jurors about items seized during his arrest. Those items include a 9 mm handgun that prosecutors say matches the one used in the Dec. 4, 2024, killing and a notebook in which they say Mangione described his intent to wack a health insurance executive.After getting state terrorism charges thrown out in September, Mangiones lawyers are zeroing in on what they say was unconstitutional conduct that tainted his arrest and threatens his right to a fair trial.They contend that the gun and other items should be excluded because police lacked a warrant to search the backpack in which they were found. They also want to suppress some of Mangiones statements to police, such as allegedly giving a false name, because officers started asking questions before telling him he had a right to remain silent. Eliminating the gun and notebook would be critical wins for Mangiones defense and a major setback for prosecutors, depriving them a possible murder weapon and evidence they say points to motive. The Manhattan District Attorneys Office has quoted extensively from Mangiones handwritten diary in court filings, including his praise for Unabomber Ted Kaczynski. Stay up to date with the news and the best of AP by following our WhatsApp channel. Follow on In it, prosecutors say, Mangione mused about rebelling against the deadly, greed fueled health insurance cartel and said killing an industry executive conveys a greedy bastard that had it coming. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to state and federal murder charges. The state charges carry the possibility of life in prison, while federal prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Neither trial has been scheduled yet. Mangiones lawyers want to bar evidence from both cases, but this weeks hearings pertain only to the state case. The next hearing in the federal case is scheduled for Jan. 9.Court officials say the hearings beginning Monday could take more than a week. If that holds, Mangione is almost certain to be in court Thursday, which is the anniversary of Thompsons death.Defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo told a judge in an unrelated matter last week that Manhattan prosecutors could call more than two dozen witnesses. Thompson was killed as he walked to a Manhattan hotel for his companys annual investor conference. Surveillance video showed a masked gunman shooting him from behind. Police say delay, deny and depose were written on the ammunition, mimicking a phrase used to describe how insurers avoid paying claims.Mangione, the Ivy League-educated scion of a wealthy Maryland family, was arrested five days later at a McDonalds in Altoona, Pennsylvania, about 230 miles (about 370 kilometers) west of Manhattan.Prosecutors in the state case have not responded to the defenses written arguments. An officer searching a backpack found with Mangione was heard on a body camera recording saying she was checking to make sure there wasnt a bomb in the bag. His lawyers argue that was an excuse designed to cover up an illegal warrantless search of the backpack.Federal prosecutors, fighting similar claims in their case, have said in court filings that police were justified in searching the backpack to make sure there were no dangerous items. His statements to officers, federal prosecutors said, were made voluntarily and before he was taken into police custody. MICHAEL R. SISAK Sisak is an Associated Press reporter covering law enforcement, courts and prisons. He is based in New York. twitter mailto