Several young people rallied Tuesday outside a Manhattan court — days after Turning Point USA (TPUSA) founder Charlie Kirk’s assassination — to support a man accused of killing a healthcare executive in December 2024, according to Newsweek.
A New York judge dropped terrorism charges Tuesday against Luigi Mangione, who is accused of carrying out the premeditated and orchestrated killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on Dec. 4, 2024. Young supporters of Mangione hailed the ruling as “fantastic news,” and argued that Kirk’s case was “not very comparable,” according to Newsweek.
“They’re two different things, you know? One was an influencer who spoke on politics and one was a CEO of a healthcare company and I don’t think those two things are very comparable,” Mangione supporter Abril Rios, 26, told Newsweek. “It’s not shocking he [Mangione] has a lot of support, especially within Gen Z.”
Both Thompson and Kirk’s murders resulted in days-long manhunts and polarizing reactions nationwide — with several online and in the media either celebrating or minimizing their deaths. New York Judge Gregory Carro did keep the state’s second-degree murder charges against Mangione, and Kirk’s alleged assassin is expected to make his first virtual court appearance on Tuesday.
Rios told Newsweek it was “fantastic news” that Carro dropped the terrorism charges against Mangione while wearing a “Free Luigi” T-shirt, adding that “we were waiting for it. It’s been a long time coming, so I couldn’t be happier.”
“It’s always sobering to see him in person. … It’s so different from images. You really see the paleness, the cracks, dehydration. It’s sad to see him like that. I wish he were getting more sun obviously, but I’m sure he’s feeling happy after today,” Rios told Newsweek, noting she does not support violence and that Mangione has not been proven guilty yet in state or federal court.
Rios told the outlet when reportedly asked how she feels about a man officials say killed a man in cold blood that she felt a connection to him. “I am Gen Z and I think a lot of us feel left behind,” she said. “We’re not seen and no one cares. We’re kind of being pushed down. The ceiling is always being risen and we can’t reach it.”
Newsweek also spoke to another protestor who told the publication she had traveled to New York from the Philadelphia area that the dropped charges were “beautiful” and “perfect.”
“They should’ve never given him that. He’s not a terrorist,” Angela Melendez, 27, told Newsweek. “Not guilty. … But first and foremost, let him go back to Pennsylvania. He was illegally searched, seized and detained. They trapped him in a corner in the McDonald’s and they were interrogating him without telling him.”
Newsweek photographed Melendez wearing a hat similar to the one worn by the Nintendo video game character Luigi.
Mangione’s legal defense information is posted to a website where Mangione has acknowledged the support he’s received.
“I am overwhelmed by — and grateful for — everyone who has written me to share their stories and express their support. Powerfully, this support has transcended political, racial, and even class divisions,” Mangione wrote. “While it is impossible for me to reply to most letters, please know that I read every one that I receive. Thank you again to everyone who took the time to write.”
Several online flocked to support Kirk’s alleged assassin, and several professors and members of the media have been fired or put on leave over celebratory and false statements following the killing.
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