Free Republic

Luigi Mangione’s wild ride through the justice system stalled out Monday — when he got stuck in a Manhattan court elevator for 20 minutes, delaying a hearing in his federal case. The 28-year-old accused killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was in the lift with his escort of US Marshals, headed to the courtroom, when the contraption suddenly stopped, courthouse sources told The Post. “It was some sort of elevator issue, that’s all I know,” Mangione’s lawyer, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, said when asked about the snafu outside the courtroom. “Can’t wait to hear what you guys find out about that!”...

A mistrial was declared in the Pacific Palisades arson case after a jury deadlocked. Prosecutors said they will retry the case. Last October, federal prosecutors announced that 29-year-old Jonathan Rinderknecht of Orlando, Florida, was arrested for intentionally setting the Palisades fire. Rinderknecht was an Uber driver at the time he intentionally set the fire. Federal prosecutors said Rinderknecht intentionally set the fire in January 2025 which left 12 people dead and caused more than $150 billion in damage. The 360 degree annihilation of parts of Pacific Palisades is genuinely difficult to take in… pic.twitter.com/wzu2YDcND4 — alex thomson (@alextomo) January 9,...

The jury in the trial about the origin of the devastating January 2025 fires in Los Angeles has reached a verdict. Jonathan Rinderknecht, 30, faced three federal charges of destruction of property by means of fire, arson affecting property used in interstate commerce and timber set afire for the January 2025 Palisades Fire. The former Uber driver pleaded not guilty in October and faces up to 45 years in prison. Prosecutors argued that Rinderknecht intentionally and maliciously started a previous fire on a popular hiking trail known as Skull Rock on Jan. 1, called the Lachman Fire, that smoldered for...

A federal judge declared a mistrial for the man accused of deliberately igniting the Palisades Fire after jurors failed to reach a unanimous verdict. Jonathan Rinderknecht was arrested in October 2025 and charged with destruction of property by means of fire, and he pleaded not guilty after being charged in the Palisades Fire in January 2025. Ten of the California jurors thought Rinderknecht was not guilty, while two thought he was. "The evidence is strong that Jonathan Rinderknecht is responsible for igniting the fire on January 1, 2025, which eventually became the Palisades fire," United States Attorney Bill Essayli said...

He is facing a second degree murder charge in connection with the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, 50, in New York City in December 2024.Luigi Mangione will assert a psychiatric defense in his state murder trial in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, the judge overseeing the case said at a hearing on Wednesday. If his attorneys are able to prove he was experiencing an extreme emotional disturbance at the time of the alleged killing, Mangione’s second-degree murder charge be reduced to first-degree manslaughter if he’s convicted. Mangione faces nine felony charges, including second-degree murder and several...

Ghoulish internet trolls are editing photos of themselves so they appear to be urinating on Austin Metcalf’s grave — in a twisted act of solidarity with the Texas teen’s killer, Karmelo Anthony. Numerous photos showing the despicable act surfaced on social media this week after 19-year-old Anthony was convicted Tuesday of first-degree murder in the 2025 stabbing, with some of the photos tagged with the likes of “#FreeKarmeloAnthony,” “#AustinMetcalf” and even “#F–kEm.” “F–K AUSTINNNNN METCALF,” read a third, followed by a series of middle finger and laughing emojiis. The vile urination photos gained widespread attention on social media from the...

A Miami biotech executive was followed into the skyscraper where he lived by a man who is accused of pushing him off the building’s 25th floor, newly released surveillance video shows. Justin Zelin, 35, was seen walking into Miami Beach’s 47-story Akoya Condominium with a bearded man, Corey Hutterli, 37, following on Feb. 12 — three days before his death, NBC6 reported. Zelin, who had worked as a biotechnology equity research analyst at BTIG since January 2021, reportedly shouted, “Get away from me, Sasha,” using a nickname by which Hutterli was known. There was a bust-up and cops said, “During...

The left’s glamorization of political violence begins as performance, but history shows how quickly chic nihilism can become something far darker. Brian Thompson’s shooter suspect in hostel CCTV. (security camera, Wikimedia Commons)On the morning of May 18, 2026, on the granite steps of Manhattan’s Criminal Courts Building, three chic women arranged themselves like starlets at Cannes. The heels. The practiced hip-thrust. Weight cocked to one side, chin down, eyes up. With enough mascara between them to repaint Gracie Mansion. But the most revealing part, the part that showed the most skin, was the laminated press credential blessed by the office...

Three cheerleaders for Luigi Mangione have followed his trial and advocated for the 28-year-old accused of shooting United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson to death in December 2024. One of those people, 32-year-old Lena Weissbrot, is apparently the daughter of a CVS Healthcare executive, according to a New York Post report. Bloodthirsty Luigi Mangione fangirls unapologetically celebrate CEO’s assassination: ‘F—k Brian Thompson,’ ‘His children are better off without him’. Read today's cover here: https://t.co/WAbr1HDQiD pic.twitter.com/TtsBt751qM— New York Post (@nypost) May 19, 2026The NYPost reported: “Lena Weissbrot, a member of the twisted trio hopelessly devoted to the accused assassin of UnitedHealthcare CEO...

The media has an odd term for the sullen young women who have made a sexual fetish of pretty-boy killer Luigi Mangione. They’re called Luigi Fangirls. It evokes a frolic, young women skipping down the street, singing, holding hands. You know, “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.” But I much prefer another name, a more direct name: Witches. I’m told that witches are supposedly fictional, a phobia created by men, by the patriarchy, to impose our evil will upon women who cling to stories like “The Handmaid’s Tale,” to justify generations of their cruelties upon boys, from wholesale abortion to “gender...

Weissbrot is one of three supporters of Mangione who are referred to online as “Mangionistas." One of the fangirl “journalists” who has publicly supported Luigi Mangione is reportedly the daughter of a senior healthcare executive at CVS Health. Lena Weissbrot is the daughter of Reina Natero, a longtime pharmaceutical industry executive who oversees prescription drug insurance coverage rules at CVS Health. Natero has worked in the industry for more than two decades. Weissbrot is one of three supporters of Mangione who are referred to online as “Mangionistas.” They recently gained attention during Mangione’s pre-trial hearings after receiving New York City...

Faith FactsLuigi Mangione, accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, has attracted disturbing fan worship from Americans celebrating violenceCultural critics warn of an emerging ‘assassination culture’ where murder is glamorized and political violence is normalizedThe breakdown of shared moral values rooted in the sanctity of life threatens the foundation of civil society and democratic governanceThe troubling case of Luigi Mangione has exposed a dark undercurrent in American culture that should alarm every person of faith and conscience. Accused of the cold-blooded murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan, Mangione has inexplicably become a folk hero to a disturbing number...

Faith FactsLuigi Mangione, accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, has attracted disturbing fan worship from Americans celebrating violenceCultural critics warn of an emerging ‘assassination culture’ where murder is glamorized and political violence is normalizedThe breakdown of shared moral values rooted in the sanctity of life threatens the foundation of civil society and democratic governanceThe troubling case of Luigi Mangione has exposed a dark undercurrent in American culture that should alarm every person of faith and conscience. Accused of the cold-blooded murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan, Mangione has inexplicably become a folk hero to a disturbing number...

As New York mayoral figure Zohran Mamdani unveiled plans for taxpayer-funded government grocery stores… Old videos suddenly resurfaced online 👇 Now? The backlash is spiralling FAST. In this video, we break down: 👉 Mamdani announcing government-run grocery stores across NYC 👉 The resurfaced speech invoking Islamic migration narratives 👉 Why critics say the videos are causing massive concern online 👉 The activists filmed praising violence and defending the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson 👉 Questions surrounding who was granted press access to official events 👉 Why conservatives say this reflects a much deeper ideological shift 👉 The growing national...

A shelter-in-place has been issued for a wide swath of South Austin, bordered by south Slaughter Lane, east McKinney Falls Parkway, north Ben White Boulevard and west Escarpment Boulevard. This comes as Austin police are searching for a person who is believed to be responsible for multiple shootings since Saturday. At least two people have been injured. It is not clear what the motive of the shootings are. The shootings have taken place in various locations, including at two fire stations, and appear to be random. As of 2:15 p.m., police believe the suspect to be a male in his...

Three days before a 31-year-old male stormed the White House Correspondents Dinner, hoping to assassinate President Donald Trump and members of his cabinet, the New York Times published a 35-minute video titled: “‘The Rich Don’t Play by the Rules. So Why Should I?’ Why petty theft might be the new political protest.” In it, a Times editor interviewed two other members of the media aristocracy about the moral code shared by a large swathe of young Americans. That code justifies theft—and even violence—when harnessed to a fashionably left-wing cause. None of the participants—podcasting celebrity Hasan Piker, New Yorker writer Jia...

“The alleged pyromaniac accused of igniting the deadly Palisades Fire – Los Angeles’ most destructive wildfire – chipped in a tiny donation to Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign, records show. Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, shelled out $2 to hybrid PAC ActBlue on two separate occasions just days apart in 2020 – $1 on Sept. 4 and another buck on Sept. 11, according to the Federal Election Commission. Records also show the alleged arsonist — born in France — was registered to vote in Florida, though he never declared a political party.”

Authorities in California charged a 29-year-old man with "malicious destruction' for allegedly starting a deadly fire that erupted into the most destructive blaze in Los Angeles history and destroyed much of the wealthy Pacific Palisades neighborhood, officials announced Wednesday. Federal law enforcement officials accused 29-year-old Jonathan Rinderknecht of lighting a fire on New Year’s Day that was initially extinguished by fire crews, but continued to smolder underground before reigniting during high winds, acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said during a news conference. Rinderknecht was arrested Tuesday in Florida, where he moved after the fire, and is due to appear in...

Authorities have arrested a 29-year-old Uber driver in connection to the investigation into the deadly January Palisades Fire. Jonathan Rinderknecht, of Melbourne, Florida, was arrested Tuesday near his home on suspicion of destruction of property by means of fire. If convicted as charged, Rinderknecht faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 20 years in federal prison. "He is charged with starting a fire on Jan. 1," Acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said. "It did take a week to reignite, but he is charged with starting the Palisades Fire." The criminal complaint covers the damages and death...

The deranged firebug accused of igniting the devastating Palisades Fire had become “fixated” with Luigi Mangione in the lead up to the deadly blaze — and then allegedly suggested the inferno was started out of “resentment of the rich,” prosecutors said. Jonathan Rinderknecht, 30, was obsessed with the accused healthcare CEO killer and had routinely searched “free Luigi Mangione” and “lets take down all the billionaires” online, court documents show. In the weeks and hours before allegedly sparking the blaze that triggered the catastrophic Palisades fire, Rinderknecht — who worked as an Uber driver — ranted to customers about Mangione’s...