Hundreds, including some from out of town, gathered in New York on Tuesday for the pre-trial hearing of Luigi Mangione, the young man accused of killing United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
They waited in a line that stretched around the block and cheered when his lawyers arrived and again when Mangione himself was brought into the courtroom.
Mangione, who has pleaded not guilty and is being held without bail, was surrounded by dozens of guards and shackled at his wrists and ankles while in court.
“This week on HBO in a documentary, I see the Chief of Detectives and the New York City mayor, full hair and makeup done, sitting down and giving an interview for television talking about the evidence in Luigi’s case,” one of his lawyers said after the hearing.
Mangione’s supporters say that they are engaged in the case because of outrage over the for-profit healthcare industry, not because of the alleged actions of Mangione.