New Delhi: The group supporting Luigi Mangione’s legal defence fund, December 4 Legal Committee, says it will continue to support him “until he is free”, even after Mangione confessed to killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson earlier this month.
“We are committed to helping provide Luigi support until he is free,” Sam Beard, a committee spokesperson, told The Times.
Mangione was sentenced to jail in December 2024, five days after the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. He also faces separate charges for second-degree murder.
“I shot Mr Thompson in Manhattan and he died,” said the 28-year-old graduate of the University of Pennsylvania to a Manhattan courtroom, changing his initial plea of ‘not guilty’.
Soon after his sentencing, thousands of individuals donated money to the fund, which crossed more than $1 million in May 2026, on Mangione’s 28th birthday.
“People are still donating regularly, whatever they can, to Luigi’s legal defence fund. It just shows that Luigi’s support is durable and robust and isn’t going anywhere,” Beard added.
Luigi could also face a maximum prison sentence, while federal guidelines recommend a prison term of between 24 and 30 years.
‘Luigi did nothing wrong’
In December 2025, the activist group vowed to continue raising money for Mangione regardless of the outcome or the charges he faces in court.
According to the latest report, the fund has raised more than $1.5 million from over 42,000 donors. However, the team is yet to reach its target of $1.75 million.
New York law limits Mangione’s use of the fund’s money. He can use it to pay for his legal defence, but not for personal gain.
“Plain and simple, he cannot use the funds from his crowdsourcing for anything but his legal defence and litigation costs. Anything left over could be the subject of seizure by the state and/or paid as restitution to his victim’s family,” said Kenneth Belkin, a criminal defence attorney in New York, who is not associated with the case.
People on social media can be seen continuously asking where they can still donate for Mangione.
“Where can I donate? I work for a Medicare health plan, and I was in a room full of corporate, greedy executives who have no empathy for the sick and poor they collect from. They were too busy laughing about their vacation plans, yet they lack empathy toward the sick,” said one user on Instagram.
Many others share the sentiment.
“Luigi did nothing wrong,” said another comment.
(Edited by Prasanna Bachchhav)
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