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(NEW YORK) — Luigi Mangione returns on Friday to Manhattan federal court, where prosecutors have said they would seek the death penalty if he’s convicted of stalking and killing UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson on a New York City sidewalk in 2024. 

The appearance follows a three-week hearing in state court during which Mangione tried to convince the judge to exclude some of the critical evidence police said they found in his backpack, including writings and the alleged murder weapon. 

Prosecutors said in a letter Thursday no such hearing is necessary in the federal case.

“The Government searched the contents of the defendant’s notebook pursuant to a judicially authorized search warrant that expressly covered, among other things, handwritten materials, including notebook entries, contained within the defendant’s backpack,” prosecutor Sean Buckley wrote.

“To the extent that the defendant now seeks to challenge the validity of the Government’s warrant — an argument the defendant similarly did not make in either his moving or reply papers — that argument would also fail on the merits because the warrant, which disclosed the initial search of the defendant’s backpack by the Altoona Police Department, was supported by ample probable cause,” wrote Buckley.

Earlier this week, prosecutors disputed a defense claim that Mangione should not face the death penalty because of a purported conflict of interest by Attorney General Pam Bondi.

The defense said Bondi is continuing to benefit from a 401k established while she worked at the lobbying firm Ballard Partners, which represents UnitedHealthcare.

Prosecutors said Ballard has made no contributions to her retirement plan since her Senate confirmation as attorney general, and argued that she stands to gain nothing from a “capital outcome” in the Mangione case.

“There is simply no factual basis for the assertion that outside corporate interests influenced the Attorney General’s charging decision in any fashion. The defendant’s insinuations otherwise rest on an inaccurate financial narrative,” Buckley wrote.

Mangione, who has pleaded not guilty to federal charges, is also trying to fight the possibility of the death penalty by challenging one of the aggravating factors that makes him eligible.

Paresh Patel, an expert on the federal stalking statute who Mangione has added to his legal team, is expected to argue that stalking is not a crime of violence and, therefore, an improper predicate to making the case death penalty eligible.

Prosecutors say the defense is wrong.

“Volitional conduct by the defendant that simultaneously places the victim in reasonable fear of death or bodily injury and that proximately causes the victim’s death necessarily involves the ‘use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force against the person or property of another,’ thereby making the offenses charged in Counts Three and Four crimes of violence,” Buckley argued.

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(PORTLAND, Ore.) — Two people were injured in a shooting involving a federal agent in Portland, Oregon, on Thursday, according to authorities.

The incident came a short time after an ICE officer allegedly shot and killed a woman in her car in Minneapolis, Minnesota, sparking outrage and backlash against the presence of federal agents there. Similarly, the mayor of Portland called for immigration enforcement operations to halt while the investigation is ongoing.

In both cases, federal officials said the motorists tried to ram agents, who fired defensive shots.

The Department of Homeland Security said the shooting in Portland occurred while Border Patrol agents were conducting a “targeted” stop on a vehicle carrying two people allegedly affiliated with the Tren de Aragua gang. The passenger was the target, DHS said.

The agents on the stop were part of a Customs and Border Protection operation dubbed “Operation Oregon,” according to multiple law enforcement sources.

“When agents identified themselves to the vehicle occupants, the driver weaponized his vehicle and attempted to run over the law enforcement agents,” DHS said in a statement.

The driver, who was not the target of the operation, was stopped driving a red Toyota, before they attempted to flee. The agent, as DHS said in their statement, feared for their safety and fired at the vehicle.

Sources stressed the information and investigation are in its preliminary stages and the information could change.

The two that were shot, were treated at a hospital for their injuries and their conditions are unknown, according to law enforcement sources. Both are believed to be connected to the Tren de Aragua gang, according to DHS.

During the press conference, Portland Police Chief Bob Day said local officials “do not know the facts of this case,” but an investigation is ongoing.

Asked whether the passenger is linked to a previous shooting, the police chief said, “I can’t comment on whether or not that’s the case. We don’t know who these individuals are.”

Portland Mayor Keith Wilson told reporters, “We know what the federal government says happened here. There was a time when we could take them at their word. That time is long past.”

“We are calling on ICE to halt all operations in Portland until a full and independent investigation can take place,” he said. “Our community deserves answers.”

Later Thursday evening, Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield said he was opening an investigation into the shooting.

In a social media post, Rayfield said the Oregon Department of Justice investigation will examine whether any federal officers acted outside the scope of their lawful authority during the encounter. The post said the investigation would include witness interviews and video evidence.

The shooting incident occurred around 2:18 p.m. local time on Thursday, officials said. Portland police officers responding to a call for help found a man and woman with “apparent gunshot wounds,” according to the police department.

“Officers confirmed that federal agents had been involved in a shooting,” the Portland Police Department said in an earlier statement, adding, “Portland Police were not involved in the incident.”

The shooting occurred some 3 miles away from where the victims were found, on the 10200 block of Southeast Main Street near Adventist Health, a medical office, according to Portland police. The victims then drove themselves to an apartment complex in the area of Northeast 146th Avenue and East Burnside Street, where the man who had been shot called for help, according to police.

The FBI was seen in video responding to the scene of the shooting. Portland police are assisting, a department spokesperson said.

Police Chief Day urged calm amid “heightened emotion” following a deadly ICE officer-involved shooting in Minneapolis on Wednesday.

“We are still in the early stages of this incident,” Day said in a statement. “We understand the heightened emotion and tension many are feeling in the wake of the shooting in Minneapolis, but I am asking the community to remain calm as we work to learn more.”

During the press conference, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek called for transparency from the federal government in the investigation.

“The priority right now is a full, completed investigation, not more detentions. My message to the federal government is this: We demand transparency. We demand your cooperation with Portland Police and the Multnomah County DA, because we need to investigate this incident efficiently and effectively so we can rebuild trust with our nation’s government,” Kotek said.

Earlier, Mayor Wilson called the incident “deeply troubling” while also calling on residents to “show up with calm and purpose during this difficult time.”

“Portland does not respond to violence with violence,” he said in a statement. “We respond with clarity, unity, and a commitment to justice. We must stand together to protect Portland.”

Early Friday, Portland police confirmed that at least six people were arrested during protests as crowds gathered outside an ICE facility.

“At about 9 p.m., officers requested that people move to the sidewalk, as traffic remained open in the area. An officer in the PPB Sound Truck, a loudspeaker-equipped police vehicle, broadcast that request repeatedly to the group,” the Portland Police bureau said in their statement. “PPB moved in and made targeted arrests resulting in five custodies,” while another arrest was made later on.

Multnomah County District Attorney Nathan Vasquez told reporters at the scene of the shooting that he is “very concerned.”

“We are here from this attorney’s office to monitor, to assist and to make sure that there’s a thorough and complete investigation, that evidence is fully preserved, and that we’re certainly hoping that we can get all of the facts about what transpired,” he said.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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(CALIFORNIA) — A year ago, the deadly wildfires in Southern California left behind a trail of destruction and forced desperate families to flee for their lives.

Charred vehicles filled the streets in Los Angeles’ Pacific Palisades neighborhood, where the flames reduced houses to ash-covered shells.

The embers are gone and the dust has settled a year later, but most of those houses are still vacant lots and families remain stuck in limbo.

“World News Tonight” anchor David Muir returned to the neighborhood to mark the anniversary of the disaster and reunited with some of the residents he met in January 2025. Many said they are still struggling to pick up the pieces and some are making the tough decision to leave their the neighborhood they once called home.

Nearly 24,000 acres burned in the Palisades fire alone, with nearly 7,000 structures — most of them homes — going up in smoke. The blaze erupted on Jan. 7, 2025, along with the Eaton fire that destroyed more than 9,000 buildings. Together, the fires claimed the lives of at least 31 people.

A year ago in Pacific Palisades, Alessandro Vigilante raced to his two boys’ school to pick them and flee the fires, while his wife stayed behind to grab their most important documents before their house burned down.

Hours later, Muir met the father of two as he returned to see what was left of his home for the first time. Vigilante and his family lost everything, but were thankful to still have each other.

“We’ll figure out the rest,” he told Muir last year.

Today, the site of Vigilante’s home is an empty grass-covered lot surrounded by a white picket fence — the only thing that remains of his old home. Speaking with Muir again, he said getting insurance money was not an easy process.

“Literally, we had the last check, like, two weeks ago,” he told Muir, nearly a year after the fires.

Pointing to the lot, Vigilante reflected on that process.

“You don’t expect to have to discuss anything. It’s a total loss,” he said. “Basically looking at every single detail that they can think of from the handles that you had on the doors to the type of countertops. And again, that was mind-blowing, because I’m like, well, when we signed the policy, that’s the moment you should have decided whether my house was worth that much or not. Now it’s too late.”

Vigilante decided to sell the lot rather than rebuild, he noted, even though he said the land is now half the value it was when he moved in four years before.

“It’s OK. It was a chapter of our life,” he said, with a sigh.

Down the street from Vigilante, Liz Jones showed Muir the empty lot where she now plans to rebuild her family’s home from the ground up.

Last year, she saw the charred remains of her daughter’s car in one of Muir’s reports. That’s when she knew her home was gone.

“Is that when reality set in?” Muir asked her last year.

“One hundred percent,” Jones said.

Jones said she and her husband were determined to rebuild, and they are among the lucky few who were able to get some insurance money. Jones continued to carry her pride for the community around her neck, with a necklace that spelled out “Palisades.”

Preston and Kelsey Hayes had just broken ground on their new home when Muir met them at the site.

A year ago, the couple, who have two children, donned protective gear and masks to survey the damage and wondered if they would ever come back.

“Were you concerned at all about the soil and what might be contaminated from the fires?” Muir asked the couple at the construction site.

“Yeah for sure,” Preston Hayes said.

“And you felt reassured by the tests?” Muir asked.

“Yes,” Kelsey Hayes said.

As they looked out across their neighborhood a year after the fires, they knew that their neighbors would not all be as fortunate.

“We want the community to be the same. I don’t think it will be, unfortunately,” Preston Hayes said.

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